Alliances
by smeykunz
Summary: Sequel to Kiss me, Kill me? Bill/Mattie/Eric/Sookie and even a little Pam and Victor. The plot thickens, what will our group do to bring down Felipe? Who wants to help? What is Mattie now and what will she be?
1. Chapter 1

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

Chapter 1

Thanks in part to Victor, I had a whole week off to myself. Of course I had work to do at Fangtasia, but that was fun. Pam and I screwed around and bugged Eric most of the time. Bill and I had been cooped up in the house for the last 48 hours (hehe) so I really needed to get out. I had been on a steady diet of Bill's blood and crappy food from our practically non-existent pantry. Bill said that I was starting to taste anemic. I really needed a cheeseburger.

It was Karaoke night at Merlotte's. When you get a big group of supes together, it's kind of a kick. Everyone in town was out tonight, cutting loose. We all had a really good time. I was fairly far gone, much to Bill's chagrin.

Most of the residents of Bon Temps had accepted "us" with calm aplomb. There were more supernatural creatures in this town than one would expect. We had Vampires, Shifters, Witches, Fairies, Slayers, Werewolves. Was that it? That's probably enough. My family alone was a cornucopia.

I had always been a bit of a showman and I LOVED Karaoke. I was really excited when Sam told me he was getting one. Most of the drunk residents had taken their turn and it was a turn for the worse. I was kind of in the mood to shake things up a bit. Did I ever mention that I can sing?

Poor Bill. He really hates when I make a spectacle of myself or of him for that matter, but I had been indulging his fantasies for nights (literally) and I deserved to goof off. I made sure to choose a song that would show off my vocal abilities without embarrassing him too much. (Maybe) I took the stage.

_HEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!_

_I could feel it from the start_

_Couldn't stand to be apart_

_Something 'bout you caught my eye_

_Something moved me deep inside_

_Don't know what you did boy, but you had it_

_And I been hooked ever since_

_Told my mother, my brother, my sister, and my friends_

_Told the others, my lovers both past and present tense_

_That every time I see you everything starts making sense_

_Ain't no other man, can stand up next to you_

_Ain't no other man, on the planet knows what you do_

_You're the kinda guy, a girl finds in a blue moon_

_You've got soul, you've got class, you've style, think you're bad ass_

_Ain't no other man it's true_

_Ain't no other man but you!_

If Vampires had the ability to blush I was certain Bill would have been. I was moving through the crowd while I was singing. I made my way over to him, gyrating around. He sat totally still with the exception of one noticeable part. He shifted in his seat, crossing his legs, masking it the best he could.

When I was through with my song, I sauntered back over to him placing myself in his lap.

"I'm sorry. I couldn't help it."

"You are not sorry."

"You're right, I'm not. I meant every word. You're sexy!"

Boy was I drunk. Oh well, what the hell! I was having a good time. Amelia started belting out "I Kissed a Girl". I grabbed Pam and started bumping and grinding with her. I looked over at Bill and mouthed the words,

_Hope my boyfriend don't mind it_

before planting one on Pam.

"I'm fairly certain he wouldn't" was the response I got from Bill.

When the song was over, I cozied back up to him and snacked on some fries. It was still pretty busy and Sookie was running around from table to table. Bill needed a refill so he decided to go grab it at the bar. I watched him walk away. I simply couldn't take my eyes off of him. I'm not sure if it was the beer talking or just the truth, but I yelled out rather loudly.

"My God Pam! He has such a cute butt!"

Bill looked back and rolled his eyes at me. I should be used to that by now. He was leaning against the bar waiting for his bottle of blood when a woman came up and threw her arms around him.

"Hi Bill, How are you? You look great!"

I looked over at Pam.

"Who the hell is she?"

Bill looked slightly unnerved, but that wasn't enough for me. I jumped out of our booth and streaked over to him. He saw me coming with a distinct look of dread on his face.

"And just what the hell do you think you're doing?"

I squawked at her as I rubbed myself against Bill. I had become increasingly more possessive of him the more we had exchanged blood. I was becoming one of them, I just wasn't aware of it yet.

"Sweetheart, this is Selah. Selah, this is Mattie. She is my..."

I was curious to see how Bill would finish that sentence. Girlfriend? Mate? Bonded? Personal blood donor? Sex slave?

"She is mine."

I could live with that. I laughed a bit as I spoke to her.

"Oh, Selah. Hello. I've heard absolutely nothing about you aside from your name."

I was clearly in no mood to be nice. Bill had in fact told me a small amount about her. Sookie had filled me in on the rest. She had gotten off on the fact that she was dating a Vampire. She couldn't have cared less who he was. In my opinion, Bill was too special to take for granted and I resented her deeply for that.

She wasn't at all the way I had imagined her. She looked rather prim and proper, with a tight bun in her hair and a tailored suit, somebody who needed to pull the stick out of her...well, you get the picture.

"It's nice to meet you."

She was lying, it was written all over her snooty face. She said she had come back into town to arrange a land deal for a friend. I assumed she thought she could get a little something on the side for old time sake.

"I should probably go. I just thought I'd pop in and see if anyone was around to visit with."

Yep, that had been exactly what she was looking for. I am so smart. From what Sookie had said, nobody else in town knew her as anything more than Bill's date. I cringed at the sound of that.

"Yeah, see ya."

I planted a nice big kiss on Bill's stony face before striding back over to our table triumphantly.

I scootched into the booth next to Pam.

"What was that all about? What did she want from him?"

I was still explaining the situation to Pam when Bill returned.

"Mattie, you needn't have been so rude to her. She was merely being friendly to me."

"Sure she was. She was hoping to get a little friendlier with you I think."

"You're overreacting completely."

I waved my hand at him dismissively.

"Fine whatever Bill. You wouldn't understand. I don't have exes to parade around in front of your face."

I realize that I was being slightly unfair, but it was aggravating. If the tables had been turned, I could only imagine how Mr. Possessive would have reacted.

Jason was in the booth behind us clearly eavesdropping. He refilled my beer from his pitcher.

"She's getting crabby. This should do the trick."

He was right. I took a gulp and moved over to Bill's side of the booth.

"I'm sorry baby. It isn't your fault, but what did you see in her anyway?"

His lips were in a thin line. When he made that face, I knew not to push the issue.

My phone buzzed in my pocket.

"**WHERE R U?"**

"**MERLOTTE'S"**

"**VICTOR WANTS TO TALK"**

"**WHERE"**

"**FANGTASIA, BRING PAM"**

"**OMW"**

I looked over at Pam and we both got up to leave. I leaned over to Bill, trying to explain without really explaining anything at all. I knew if I looked disappointed, he'd think it was work related. Which it was. Sort of.

"I have to go baby. Eric needs my help. I won't be long, I promise. I love you."

I kissed Bill on the cheek and smiled at him. He seemed to be accepting of my explanatation, but still gave me a concerned look.

"Relax" I said pointing to Pam. "I'll let her drive."


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

Chapter 2

"It bothers you to lie to Bill."

"No kidding Pam, ya think?"

"It's only temporary Mattie. It is after all a safety precaution."

"I know, I just hope he sees it that way. If this blows up in my face, I want him to have plausible denial. Ya know?"

We pulled up to the employee entrance of Fangtasia and parked my car. Victor and Eric were in the office when we arrived.

"Mattie dear, how are you this evening?"

Victor gave me a kiss on the cheek and nodded to Pam.

"I'm ok. What's going on Victor?"

"I've been speaking with Russel Eddington, King of Mississippi. He and his husband Bart would like us to meet them in Chicago. It seems that Indiana has a treaty with Illinois and they are all very interested in getting in on our plans."

This was good news. With the backing of a few kings and queens, we could be powerful enough to make a stand against De Castro. I looked at Eric for approval, he nodded his head gently in my direction.

"If this works out Mattie, we will be organized enough to bring down Felipe's regime. You would be free."

Eric's words began to lift a heavy weight from my shoulders, but my brain pulled it back to me.

"When do we have to go? Bill's going to be awfully suspicious if I tell him I'm leaving town with you two. He already thinks Victor's putting the moves on me. He'll hate this!"

Victor laughed at me. I got the feeling that him being attracted to me was the most far fetched idea he had ever heard. Thanks Vic!

"Tell him he can relax, he's coming with us. I wouldn't dream of putting you in that awkward position dear. Unless of course you asked me to."

He smiled at me with a toothy "cat that ate the canary grin". I did my best to ignore him.

"We can tell him we are loaning you out to Illinois for some reconnaissance work. If this all goes well, it won't be long before you can tell him the truth."

I turned toward Eric.

"What about Sookie? How are you keeping this from her? I don't want to keep lying to her either. That's so much harder. I've had to completely avoid her."

"She will be attending as well. I told her the story you will tell Compton. Pam will remain here so it does not appear suspicious."

Pam looked a little crestfallen. She had no doubt assumed she would be part of the group.

"Alright. So when are we leaving? Do I at least have time to pack, Victor?"

Last time he called me I got a mere 2 hours to get my butt on the plane. Bill had complained that we had to throw our things in suitcases so fast that all of his clothes were wrinkled. Whah!

"We will leave two nights from now. I have already made the arrangements."

He handed me 2 tickets for Anubis Air before kissing me on the other cheek this time and taking his leave.

"How long will I need to be downtown? I'm just curious. I'd like to see my family if it's possible."

Pam and Eric tilted their heads to the side and stared at me. I don't think they had ever thought of me as having a family before. I hadn't given them reason to.

"Our meeting is the night after we arrive. I arranged a few extra days of sightseeing per Sookie's request. You should have time to see them."

Driving back to Bon Temps, my mind wandered home. It had been half a year since I had seen my family. They would be surprised to see me. Even more surprised when they did see me. I was a very different person now.

I had always been pale, but now my skin glowed faintly like Bill's. I could drink bottled blood without gagging and I seldom ate more than a few small bites a day. I still needed vitamins and red meat to keep myself from sagging, but not nearly what I used to. I had developed an allergy to silver. It was nothing more than a rash, but it was very irritating.

Bill and I weren't entirely sure if it was a by product of strengthening our bond or if I was slowly becoming like him. We started compiling a list of new side effects. He was studying as much material as he could on the subject. I was afraid of what my parents would think.

"Baby I'm home!"

Strains of horrid jazz clarinet music assaulted my ears. I found Bill on the couch. He had started a fire and was reading **DUNE**. He always liked that Sci-Fi stuff. He put down his book and I folded myself into his lap. This sort of reminded me of the first night I stayed here. Bill must have been thinking the same thing because I felt a wave of happy familiarity breeze through me.

"You seem pleased sweetheart. Did your meeting go well?"

"It did, very well in fact. Victor was there."

"I know, I can smell him on you."

Now the tables had been turned on him. I felt better about the way I had reacted to Selah.

"Bill Compton, are you jealous? Now you know how I felt earlier. He was sitting next to me. Get over it."

"He was sitting next to you? On both sides?"

Now it dawned on me why Victor had kissed each of my cheeks. He was such a brat.

"I have some news. Good news for a change. I have a job in Chicago."

Bill wrinkled up his nose. Whenever I said I had a job, it hadn't been a good thing.

"This one is different. It's a Victor project. That's a good thing. I'm not sure of all the details yet, but it's some sort of recon thing for Illinois. I leave the night after tomorrow."

He didn't look very excited.

"You're coming with me Bill. I'm going to call my mom tomorrow and let her know I'll be home. I want to see my family while I'm there. I was thinking you might want to meet them. Would you? I'd love for them to meet you."

He seemed a bit more relaxed now, but not entirely for some reason. He still wasn't answering me.

"Well, are you coming with me or not?"

"Yes. I'd like that. To meet them I mean. I want to see where you come from."

"Good. It's settled then. I can't wait for you to go home with me."

I snuck a quick kiss and snuggled down into his chest.

Bill was running his fingers along my cheek, he bent down and kissed the top of my head. I shut my eyes and melted into him. I was beginning to doze off when he spoke.

"Mattie, there's something I've been meaning to ask you. I need to know something."

"Um, yeah. What is it baby?" I yawned between words.

"Do you like being here with me? What I mean to say is, will you still want to remain here with me, forever?"

We'd talked about this so many times. When we first began exploring our bond, he seemed so unsure I was willing to embrace it. A lot has changed since then, including me. As the link between us grew stronger, so had my desire to be with him in all facets of our lives. He knew this, so what was he driving at?

"Haven't we covered this topic like a zillion times Bill? I'm not going anywhere, ever. You would have to do something pretty stupid to scare me away."

He was sending out a nervous vibe. I twisted my head around to look him in the eye.

"Did you do something stupid Bill? I mean besides buying that Kenny G album in the first place?"

"No, I have not. Be serious."

Near as I could figure, he was telling me the truth. And I **WAS** serious. I had heard this CD so many times I was considering finding a way for it to mysteriously disappear. Maybe it could have an unfortunate accident. I thought we had a hammer in the garage.

I situated myself so I was facing him, my knees on either side of his hips. I placed one of my hands on each of his cheeks and stared into his eyes.

"I am going to say this again. I will say it as many times as it takes until it manages to stay put in your brain. I am not going anywhere. I do not wish to, ever. I love you William Thomas Compton. The sooner you come to terms with that fact the better. You, my love, are stuck with me. Forever."

I leaned over and gave him a lingering kiss. When I seperated our lips I tilted my forehead to his.

"Are we good? Are you finally going to stop asking me that?"

"You will not hear it again."

"Good. Since you're done playing the insecure woman part in this relationship, how about you show me some more of that dominant male role from the other night?"

Sending him some rather libidinous vibes, I jumped off of his lap and made my way to the stairs, yelling back at him.

"I'll race you. First one to the bed wins."


	3. Chapter 3

These chapters take forever to write. I try to make them worth it. I also don't want these two to get predictable in bed. Here's hoping.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

Chapter 3

I should have known he would beat me upstairs. As I reached the door to our room, I looked up to find Bill leaning against the door jamb, arms crossed, fangs out. I was fast, but I still couldn't compete with Vampire speed.

I stood in the doorway glaring at him. I moved left, he followed. I moved back to the right, he joined me. This wasn't working out exactly the way I had planned. I had to get there first, I am way too competitive to lose. He was pretty good at anticipating my moves, I had to get creative.

I dove onto the floor and slid through the door. I was inches away from the bed frame. I reached out to touch it just as Bill grabbed my ankles. I watched the bed drift further away as he pulled me back toward him.

"Not so fast Miss."

He leaped up over me and dove onto the bed, leaving me lying face down on the hardwood. I pulled myself to my feet, peeking up over the mattress at him. He was laying there quite calm with his ankles crossed and his hands behind his head.

"Looks like I won. Too bad for you."

I let out a little Hmph crossing my arms and sitting on the edge of the bed, my back to Bill.

"Don't be such a sore loser sweetheart. Come over here by me. I'll give you the prize for second place."

I didn't move. I was bound and determined to make him work for it. I felt his weight shift on the bed as he crawled over to me. His rough tongue licked a line down the nape of my neck. I shivered slightly, relaxing my arms to my sides, pressing my palms to the bed. Soft kisses traveled around my neck and up to the sensitive skin behind my ear. I let out a long sigh. Bill was making it very hard for me to resist him. Although I really wasn't trying very hard.

I turned to see his face bathed in moonlight. He kissed me again, this time on my lips. It wasn't light and feathery like the kisses on my neck had been, but hard and commanding. It was a kiss that seemed to demand that I separate my lips and let him inside.

I was eager to comply, letting Bill's tongue move into my mouth mingling with mine. His hands moved down my sides to my waist, pulling my shirt up over my head. He nuzzled at my neck, nipping down to my shoulder. Grabbing my bra strap with his teeth, he pulled it down off of my arm.

My head was spinning already and he had hardly touched me. Bill possessed an innate ability to have me wet and wanting by merely looking at me. I found him completely irresistible.

"You have no idea what you do to me Bill Compton."

"Maybe not, but I have a fairly good idea of what I _**will**_ _**be**_ doing."

He put his hand on the back of my head, lowering me to the bed. His strong hands kneaded my flesh, while his lips pressed kisses over my collarbone and down to the valley between my breasts. He slid the other strap down over my shoulder. Pulling the cups down to free me, he put one nipple in his mouth. I let out a soft whimper as Bill suckled on me, pulling the nipple out with his teeth.

I struggled to unbutton my jeans and slide them off onto the floor. I was beginning to breathe heavily with anticipation. I reached up, fumbling with the buttons on Bill's shirt when he grabbed my hands.

"Mattie. Relax, we have all night. Slow down."

His lips assaulted mine again and I gave in to his pleas. When he let go of my hands, I found the soft skin beneath is shirt, running my fingers through his chest hair. I pushed the fabric over his shoulders and down his arms exposing his muscular upper body.

Reaching up, I wrapped my wrists around Bill's neck pulling myself to him. His hands went to my back unclasping my bra and throwing it to the floor. I fell back on the bed wriggling, watching him finish undressing himself, waiting for his cool body to once again be pressed against mine.

He slipped my panties down over my hips and off onto the floor joining the rest of our clothes. I wrapped my legs around him pulling his body back down to me. He laughed at me.

"You are insatiable my dear. You just can't stand to let me do this my way. Don't make me restrain you."

His dark eyes were sparkling as he spoke. I knew he would like nothing more than to tie me up, watching me squirm beneath him as he touched and teased me. I laid my arms up over my head and tilted my chin back.

"I'm yours. Do whatever you want. I'll stop trying to lead."

Bill wasted no time after I spoke, grabbing me behind the knees, pulling me toward the edge of the bed. A long cool finger found it's way inside me, followed immediately by a second. I gasped and arched my back, pushing myself toward him.

He shook his head and pressed his other hand onto my chest to hold me still. He wanted complete control of me, something I had seldom given him. His mouth traveled down to lick my hard nub as his fingers kept up their torturous pace. The hand on my chest slowly worked it's way over to my breast, rubbing my nipple between his thumb and finger.

My breath was escaping in short, uneven gasps, my release quickly building up inside of me.

"Please Bill, Oh Please."

He knew what I was asking of him. I wanted to feel my muscles tighten around his fingers as I reached my first peak. He increased the pace of his tongue, swirling tight circles around my already throbbing nub. His other hand trailed down my side, cupping my bottom.

He looked up into my eyes, slowing the pace of his tongue and burying a third finger in me. I groaned loudly and my eyes widened, staring down at his.

"Come for me sweetheart."

I grabbed the sheets in my fists and bucked myself as hard as I could against his hand, screaming loudly as I came, clenching my teeth. He pulled his fingers from me and climbed up onto the bed, kissing my stomach, breasts, and neck on the way up to my lips.

I grabbed his hard length in my hand stroking it softly as we kissed. I rolled onto my side placing him at my entrance. He pulled my hand away from him, shaking his head at me again.

"Not yet. You have something else to do first."

He rolled over onto his back. I raised myself up onto my elbow and began kissing his shoulder, moving slowly down his body. I raised my leg up over his chest, placing my knees on either side of his hips and leaned down toward him. Taking his length in my hand again, I darted my tongue out to lick the tip of him.

He made a low growling noise before I opened my lips, taking him into my mouth. I sucked down as far as I could go and all the way back up again grazing him with my teeth. He was grunting and scratching his nails down my back, squeezing my bottom.

I continued stroking him with my hand as I licked and sucked my way along his shaft, putting the tip in my mouth and sucking hard before plunging down again and again. His hips bucked up and and he released himself into the back of my throat.

I spun myself around and straddled him before he had the chance to stop me. I plunged down onto him, rocking myself back and forth. Bill's hands moved over my breasts, squeezing my nipples between his fingers as I slid him in and out of me. I arched my back, rolling my hips over him, enjoying the feeling of him buried inside of me.

My brush with dominance was short lived as Bill rolled us over, blasting into me much more forcefully than he ever had. He had finally stopped holding himself back and fucked me with the power I knew he had been hiding from me all this time. It was painful at first, but gave way to more pleasure than my body had ever felt.

I focused all of my senses into that one moment in time, meeting every frantic thrust. Digging my nails into his arms, I drew blood, darting my tongue out to lick it from his skin. His fangs found my breast and tore into my flesh. I screamed out in painful pleasure before riding into the most explosive climax of my life.

Bill continued drawing out my blood as he spasmed inside me meeting his release. He laid his body down on top of me, remaining within me. His lips found mine again, kissing them forcefully before nuzzling his head into my shoulder.

We laid there for a long time holding each other before climbing toward our pillows, tucking ourselves under the sheets. I laid down into the crook of Bill's arm, resting my head on his chest.

"I'm sorry I let myself get carried away."

"Don't be. I'm fine. I'm better than fine. I'm...sanguineous. Probably in more ways than one."

I listened to the laughter in his chest.

"Aren't you in pain? I was being awfully rough with you."

"I'm a little sore, but I heal really fast now. A lot faster than I used to and that was pretty damn fast too! Don't worry about me. I also wouldn't use 'awfully' as your adjective Bill. That was far from awful."

He was laughing again as I melted down into the arm he was wrapping around me.

"Mattie, you aren't as warm as you used to be."

"I know Bill. You aren't as cold as you used to be either. We should add that to the list."


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

Chapter 4

It was a damn good thing I had set my alarm. When it went off at 2 pm, I slammed down the snooze button and fell back against my pillow.

"UUHHH! I don't want to get up."

I rolled out of Bill's dead embrace, swinging my legs over the side of the bed. I felt so heavy. I trudged to the bathroom, my feet sticking to the floor like a rat in one of those glue traps. I grimaced at my reflection in the mirror. I looked like death warmed over.(ha)

I managed to drag myself into the shower, letting the water attempt to rouse me from my stupor. I had never been a morning person, but this was extreme. I could barely keep my eyes open.

Forty-five minutes later, I was downstairs making myself coffee. A cup had been all I ever needed before. Now I found myself downing the pot and still dozing off, my head in my hands. I found a scrap of paper in Bill's pile of study material and scribbled down my findings.

"One more thing to add to the ever-growing list of quirks I've developed."

"Thanks hun!" I yelled up the stairs as if Bill could actually hear me.

I grabbed my phone to call Sookie. Eric had asked me to get some new clothes for our meeting with the Vampire Royalty. He told me Sookie could help me out since she had done this sort of thing before. I figured we could pay that friend of her's a visit and get a couple of things.

"Hey, it's me. Did you get the memo about shopping today? How about now? Good. I'll be over in twenty minutes. I just have to lock down the masoleum. Bye."

The falling rain gave me a good excuse to drive since I didn't want to look lazy. I wasn't lazy after all, I was just really damn tired.

When I pulled up to Sookie's house she ran out and jumped in the car.

"Um Mattie, what's with the sunglasses. Are you hungover still?"

"No. I'm fine. It's just kind of bright out don't you think?"

She stared at me like I had been speaking Greek.

"Mattie, it's pouring rain and the sky is covered in clouds. You must be joking!"

No I wasn't, but I figured I had better lie about it until had a chance to talk to Bill.

"Yeah right. Hungover."

We drove to the little strip mall that housed Tara's Togs. It really wasn't my cup of tea, but Sookie seemed to think I could find something there.

The girl behind the counter rushed up to hug Sookie the moment we walked in. I could see that they knew each other well.

"Mattie this is my friend Tara Du Rone. This is her store. Tara this is my cousin Mattie."

I waved my hand and managed a sleepy smile. She led us in the direction of the business attire while chatting up Sookie about everything under the sun. She was apparantly privy to all the latest gossip in Bon Temps and filled us in as I browsed through the racks.

I did manage to find a black pencil skirt that hugged every curve. I grabbed a red silk blouse. It was cap sleeved with tiny bows at the end. I loved the feel of it against my skin as I tucked it in and wrapped a thick leather, zebra patterned belt around my waist. I knew I had a pair of black heels that would work perfectly with the outfit.

I pulled together a few more pieces that I could pair with things that were already in my closet. I peeked over at the lingerie section wondering if I should buy a few choice items just in case. Grabbing a lacy black and red bra and panty set, I strode over to the counter satisfied with my selections.

I handed Tara Bill's credit card. She looked confused. Obviously it was me that had been confused.

"Oh you won't need to use that here. I can just put it on Mr. Compton's account. You know he owns this whole mall."

Bill owns a strip mall? I had gotten my hair cut at the salon on the other end a couple of times, but I hadn't been too chatty with the girl. Maybe I should start gossiping with people to get the info around here.

"Ok, that's new. I wasn't aware of that. Well then, put it on the tab I guess."

What else didn't I know about Bill? I guess I had assumed that the database generated his cash flow. My job certainly wasn't paying the bills. Not that we really had that many to begin with. Sookie said her goodbyes, I thanked Tara and we walked out to the car.

"So Bill owns a strip mall huh? Who'd of thought?"

"He's had it for a few years now. I just thought you knew."

"A few years? So, you ever charge anything to boss man's account?"

Sookie's face was blank.

"No. Never."

I took that as a sign not to push the issue and rapidly changed the subject.

We stopped at Merlotte's to grab a quick bite. It was Happy Hour and the place was filled with after hours drinkers. We grabbed a table and ordered. I noticed Jason at the bar. I knew Sookie still wasn't talking to him, but I didn't have to break anybody's hand for him so I got up to say hi.

"Shit Mattie! You look awful. Did you really drink that much last night?"

Wow thanks Jas! You really know how to sweep a girl off her feet.

"No, I didn't. Why does everybody keep asking me that? I don't know, maybe I'm coming down with something. Maybe I'm still a bit hungover. I slept for 8 hours, I should be ok."

We chatted a bit before I rejoined Sookie. When our order was up, I found I could barely eat the food in front of me. It just didn't interest me much. I took a few bites and a couple of sips of my soda. I was still hungry and forced myself to finish my sandwich.

When I got home an hour later, Bill was pouring himself over the books he had left on the table and drinking a bottle of blood. I leaned over and kissed him on the head.

"Find anything interesting?" He pulled me into his lap.

"Maybe. Your physiology seems to be changing dramatically. Near as I can figure, you are either slowly becoming a Vampire or a very sexy looking Albino. I haven't nailed it down yet."

He was smiling at me, laughing at his own joke.

"That's funny to you Bill? I don't think it's very funny. How do I _slowly_ turn into a Vampire? I thought that was one of those overnight deals."

"Well I don't know Mattie. This is an unusual situation. I'll keep looking later, I have some paperwork to get done."

Being this close to Bill had never been easy for me. I leaned over inhaling deeply, smelling his skin and hair. That feeling I get when I'm near him was rising up in me. My self control was fighting a losing battle, a battle it seemed to lose nightly. I grabbed his earlobe in my mouth pulling it out and snapping it back, placing kisses across his cheek. He was doing his best to ignore me, reading and taking notes. He had gotten steadily better at holding me off. I would have to double my efforts.

I nipped softly at his neck, pulling little bits of skin between my teeth and scratching my nails along his scalp. His jaw was beginning to tense up and one hand was forming a fist. Based on the object poking me in the butt, I would say this was working.

I had been at this point so many times I could say his dialogue for him. So I did. I put on my stern Bill voice and played out our scene.

"Mattie dear, I have work to do. Isn't there anything else you could be doing right now? We can't spend all of our waking hours in bed together. How would I pay the bills?"

He was chuckling at me now. At least I had distracted him for a moment. He picked me up and plopped me over the back of the couch.

"I am glad you think you're so funny sweetheart, but I do have to work to do."

I peeked up over the couch at him as he folded himself in his chair.

"What's the matter old man? Too tired? Don't have it in ya?"

In a flash, he was standing over me knocking me onto the floor.

"Yes, I have it in me and you will too."


	5. Chapter 5

The second half of this chapter is in Bill's POV. I was missing him again.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

Chapter 5

Bill's naked body laid glistening in the firelight, still entwined with mine. He was running his fingers through my hair. We ended up making love on the rug for almost an hour. So much for getting work done. If I had known that challenging his manhood was all it took to get him fired up, I would have done it months ago.

"You're such a distraction. I have things to get done before we leave tomorrow."

"Don't be such a big baby. You only wasted an hour. Although I personally wouldn't call it a waste."

He motioned to the shopping bags I had left in the chair.

"What did you find for yourself today?"

"Oh nothing much. Sookie and I went to Tara's and I grabbed a couple of things for the trip that Eric said I needed. He told me he'd reimburse you. Which reminds me, when were you going to let me in on the fact that you own a strip mall?"

"When I was sure you wouldn't bankrupt me."

I propped my body up on my elbow and stuck my tongue out at him, handing him his clothes.

"Go back and get your work done. I have to get us packed anyway and I need to call my folks. We can't just show up unannounced tomorrow night."

Bill redressed himself and giving me a quick kiss, went to rummage through my packages. He pulled out my little black panties dangling them from one finger.

"Eric said you would need these?"

"Shush! Put those away or you'll never see me in them."

"My dear, I've seen the whole package. What would I care of the wrapping paper you put over it? I'd rather play with the gifts."

He stuffed them back in the bag chuckling and walked back to his desk.

I wrapped myself in the blanket that was draped over the arm of the chair and settled myself onto the couch with my phone.

It rang once, twice, three times before my mother answered.

"Hello?"

"Momma, it's me."

"Mattie I'm so glad you called. How are you sweetie?"

"I'm fine mom. Listen, We're going to be in town for a few days and I wanted to see if we could come by and see you guys. Is that ok?"

"Of course it's ok! Are you kidding me? And since you said we, does that mean Bill's joining you? I hope so. You're father and I have been so looking forward to meeting him."

"Um, yeah mom he'll be with me."

I don't know why I was dreading this moment so much. Bill always made a fabulous first impression and I knew they'd love him. There was just something about bringing a man home to meet my parents that seemed awkward. It also seemed very serious. Since I'd only done it once before, I wasn't exactly a pro. I gave her our flight information. She was going on about what she should make us for dinner. I had to remind her of Bill's nature, I didn't know where to begin with regard to mine.

"Mom, we won't be in until late and food isn't really on Bill's priority list. You can make me something small if you want. No garlic."

I hung up and grabbed all of my clothes that had been strewn about the living room and my shopping bags before starting up the stairs.

"Honey, I'm going up to pack. I'm not coming in there since all I'm wearing is this blanket and that would be a bad idea."

His laughter quickly traveled up to my ears. I whispered one last thing, wondering if he could hear me.

"I love you Bill."

He whispered back.

"I love you too."

* * *

On the night we were scheduled to leave for Chicago, I rose a full half hour before Mattie. I snuck out of bed as quietly as possible and stepped into the bathroom. I was hoping to avoid waking her since my shower would end up taking ten times as long with her in it. No such luck.

"Hi baby! Are you almost done? We don't have much time and I need to get in there."

She was visibly nervous and I could feel her trepidation through our bond.

"Just another minute. Are you alright my dear? You seem...tense."

I would be lying if I said the thought of pulling her in with me and erasing her tension hadn't crossed my mind as I watched her pacing across the floor. She does things to me I can't quite explain.

"I'm fine, just a little nervous is all. This is a big trip for me. I have to look good in front of the royals and I haven't been home in a long time."

I knew there was more to it than that, but she was not going to bring it up.

"And..."

"And what? I'm just a little concerned about what my mom will think when she sees us."

I turned off the shower and grabbed a towel to wrap around me.

"You are their child. They love you. They will be happy for you and the decisions you have made for yourself. Unless you are concerned they will not approve of me."

"Of course not! Believe me. My mother will LOVE you. She's probably going to drive you nuts with questions. My dad is from here. He knows this place, this house, your family. He's so much like you. And Grace and the boys...I'm not worried about that. I don't know what I'm worried about. Just ignore me. I'll be fine."

Who? She was talking about people she had never spoken of before.

"Mattie. Who is Grace? And do you have brothers?"

I watched the light bulb click on in her head. There were things she hadn't told me, but it was not purposeful.

"Oh my god Bill! I can't believe we've never talked about them. I am so sorry. I guess I was wrapped up in you...in us...I'm so bad. Grace is my little sister. She's 7. She's a doll. She was so young when I started drifting. I haven't been in her life much. I should change that. It isn't fair to her. As for the boys, no they are not my brothers. You'll see when we get there."

I placed a soft kiss on her cheek and smiled.

"Everything will be fine. Get ready, do not worry."

I watched her step into the shower before leaving the room. She was beautiful even if she was a bit neurotic.


	6. Chapter 6

This chapter changes back and forth from Mattie to Bill.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

Chapter 6

We were the last ones to get to the airport. No surprise, Bill drove. Pam was there, that was a surprise.

"Pam? I thought you weren't coming?"

"I'm not. I was elected to drive them here. Eric did not want to park his car at the terminal."

She and Bill exchanged knowing glances.

Eric and I exchanged our own knowing glances. We felt each others pain. They still don't get it. Victor was smiling at me when he spoke, I think he gets it.

"Mattie dear, I was so looking forward to seeing your car again. It's such a nice piece of machinery."

"Yeah, well they made great muscle in the '70's."

"Ah yes, the 1970's. I hardly had to use my glamor at all. You humans were all so willing back then. What a fantastic decade!"

His head tilted to the side and he let out a little sigh. He seemed to be lost in his memories. I looked over at Eric and Pam who were doing the same thing. Bill's eyes were glazed over and all four Vampires' fangs were running down. Sookie waved her hand in front of Eric's face and I snapped my fingers next to Bill's ear.

"Hey guys, remember us? Enough nostalgia, snap out of it!"

I jabbed my elbow sharply into Bill's side. He shook his head as he came to. I gave him a little WTF look.

Eric, Sookie, and Bill grabbed their luggage and began to walk away. Before setting off for the gate, Victor grabbed Pam and planted a steamy kiss on her lips.

"Pamela"

"Victor"

That was strange. Men weren't exactly Pam's type, and surely not men like Victor. I gave her a weird look. She shrugged her shoulders.

"What can I say? Last night was slow, he was there. Confidentially he does this fabulous thing with his..."

"Ok, that's enough. You don't need to go there. TMI Pam."

"Fine, but the next time you are going on about some place on your body that Bill's tongue has been, I'm not listening."

Bill's head whipped around, his eyes giving me the iciest stare. Naturally! That man is so hard to follow. One night he's screwing me on our roof(no lie), and the next he's all up in arms that I told Pam the tiniest of details about our sex life. Go figure!

* * *

Our flight was rather uneventful. Mattie and Sookie played cards most of the way. Eric had suggested we play strip poker. Typical. They settled on Rummy, Go Fish, and Old Maid. Mattie got up once to use the lavatory. Eric glanced over at me, pointing to her as she walked away.

"Won't you be joining her Compton?"

I glared at him and Sookie hit him on the arm.

"What? It was just a suggestion."

* * *

Bill and I walked hand in hand through the terminal to the security checkpoint. I could see my family on the other side. When my mother caught sight of us she began waving her arms around wildly, calling my name. I was avoiding eye contact, not wanting the whole airport to know it was me that this crazy woman was yelling to. Bill knows me so well.

"I take it you don't want the entire terminal thinking you are the progeny of a lunatic?"

"Exactly."

When we finally got over to them, mom threw her arms around my neck. When she let go, she did the same thing to poor Bill. He just stood there. I think he was a little stunned. He would have to get used to my mother. I gave my dad a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek.

"Mom, Dad...This is Bill Compton. Bill these are my parents, Abby and Noah."

Dad nodded in Bill's direction, but Bill stuck out his hand to shake my father's. I think he was a little surprised at Bill's human gesture. Pleasantly surprised.

I tousled Gracie's hair a bit.

"Hi squirt. How've you been?"

She was wearing a t-shirt with a certain teen vamp heartthrob plastered across the front. Bill brought himself down to her eye level.

"This beautiful young lady must be Grace. It's very nice to meet you."

She was beaming from the attention Bill was giving her. (I know the feeling) He pointed at Gracie's t-shirt.

"You like him?"

She grabbed Bill's neck, wrapping her legs around his waist.

"Yes, but I like you better."

He chuckled as he stood back up, Grace still clinging to him.

"I received a similar reaction when I met your sister."

Oh my God! I couldn't believe he had actually said that in front of my parents. My face felt hot. I'm sure I was blushing several shades of red. If I can still do that.

My embarrassment was cut short when I caught my father looking up over my head, a twinge of fear in his eyes. I knew Eric was behind me even before he set his hand on my shoulder. I introduced everyone around while we went to pick up our baggage.

* * *

Grace was still attached to Bill like a little barnacle when we got to the car rental counter. Victor had taken a limo to our hotel. He was meeting with Russell tonight to talk a few things over before our big pow-wow tomorrow. Eric rented a big black Escalade for him and Sookie. We got a second car since we would all be doing our own thing most evenings. When the attendant gave Bill the keys I cringed.

"Honey, why in the world would you rent us a Prius?"

"It is affordable and eco-friendly."

"Right. Cause nothing says 'Here come the scary Vampires' like good fuel efficiency."

We drove our rental car the hour to Mattie's family home. Grace had insisted on riding with us. She was a charming young girl and looked very much like I had imagined Mattie at that age. Her personality was almost identical to her sister's. God bless their parents. Handling one Mattie was sometimes more than I could take, but they had two.

Mattie had told me surprisingly little about her home and family. I was delighted to see she had grown up on a small farm not too dissimilar from mine. The house was much smaller, but charming none the less. There was a soft blanket of snow along the drive. It had been a long time since I had seen this type of winter weather. I parked our car behind Eric's, walking around to help Mattie out of her door.

Grace jumped up onto my back when she emerged from the car. It had also been a long time since I had been around very many children. She was a very affectionate child. It made me long for my own children as well as the children I knew Mattie and I would never have.

"Gracie! Quit hanging on Bill. He's gonna run away screaming and I may never see him again."

"Nonsense my dear. She is fine. Are you a bit jealous that she is garnering so much of my attention?"

I think she was. I gave her a wink. Truth be told, I was glad it was me Grace was attached to. I had been so used to everyone preferring Eric, it was a welcome change.

I was in no way prepared for the next family members I would meet. When Mattie's father opened the front door, two gigantic black dogs ran toward us. These were "The boys". One of them jumped up to place his paws on Eric's shoulders, looking him straight in the face. Noah was quick to discipline him.

"Thor! Get down. Leave Mr. Northman alone."

The dog flopped back down onto all fours, leaning all of his body weight into Eric's leg. He roared with laughter.

"Mattie, your dog is named Thor? How wonderful!"

"Yes, that's Thor and this is his little brother, Loki. They're Great Danes."

Mattie motioned to the smaller dog. He was still quite large. Naturally they had been named for Norse gods. One more thing to stroke Eric's ego.

We spent quite a long time with Mattie's parents. Her mother told us many stories about Mattie's childhood. Mattie was not pleased to have her embarrassing moments recounted. Eric seemed to relish in the fact that he now knew things that would get under her skin. I enjoyed knowing a few of those things myself.

Eric and Sookie took their leave soon after. Grace had fallen asleep in my lap much the way her sister often does. Abby scooped her up and carried her to bed, Mattie following behind. I saw the perfect opportunity to speak to Mattie's father. I had something important to discuss with him. This was my chance.


	7. Chapter 7

A small part in the middle is in Eric's POV. The rest is Mattie.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chapter 7

The next evening Bill woke me up in his favorite way. The first time I awoke to his face looming over me, his hard length buried inside of me, I nearly climaxed right then. I was a bit more accustomed to the sensation now. It was not only Bill's first instinct each night when we rose, but it was becoming mine as well. Followed closely by feeding from one and other. I had even taken a turn waking him up in the same fashion. The look on his face was priceless when his eyes opened and he looked up at me, realizing what parts were where. That was Pam's favorite story. If Bill had known that, I'd be a dead woman.

He seemed to be in a particularly good mood tonight. Why was anyone's guess. We spent quite a long time rolling around between the sheets before he lured me into the shower for round two. When I was finally dressed and ready for my meeting I was exhausted. What can I say? He has a gift. I walked out of the bathroom to find him on the phone talking all cute to whomever was on the other end.

"Certainly sweetheart. I would be glad to. I will pick you up in about an hour."

He closed the phone and looked up at me with a silly little smile on his face. What in the world was he doing?

"Who were you talking to Bill? You were all cutesy. You don't even talk like that to me."

"That was my date. Since you will be busy this evening, I'm taking Grace to see a cartoon."

I choked back my laughter since he seemed so proud of himself.

"I told you about her. I knew she'd have you wrapped around her little finger in no time. Be careful, Bill. She's good. She'll have you talked into things before you realize what you're doing. I took her to Target one time. My mother asked that I get her some paper towels, miscellaneous household items. When we got to the checkout, there was an entire outfit in the cart and a Barbie. I'm just saying, consider yourself forewarned."

He wrapped his arms around my waist from behind, nuzzling into my neck.

"She clearly learned from the best. You also have a way of talking me into things I wouldn't normally do. May I say, you look beautiful tonight my darling."

"You may."

I was wearing my new red silk blouse and black skirt. I had on the earrings Bill had given me. I never take them off. I was getting that "standing too close to Bill" feeling again. I pushed myself away from him before he caught the vibe from me. There was no stopping us once that happened.

I gave Bill a quick kiss as we left our room. He set off in the direction of the parking garage, leaving me to meet Eric and Victor. I found them in the bar, glasses of blood in hand. They seemed to have a whole big bottle of it. This wasn't the True Blood that Bill and I kept around the house, this was the good stuff. Victor motioned to the cocktail waitress who immediately brought me a glass of red wine. I could get used to hanging out with these two. The service was impeccable when they were around.

"Mattie dear, you look gorgeous as always."

"Thank you Victor. Flattery will get you everywhere."

He moved closer to me after I said that. Immediately I knew I had made a mistake.

"Easy Tiger. I didn't mean EVERYWHERE."

"Hmmm. So disappointing." He leaned over to me inhaling deeply.

"You smell different tonight, not your usual sweet scent of human, grass, flowers, and fruit."

I didn't know what he was driving at. I hadn't used any new lotion or perfume. Everything in my grooming routine was status quo.

"Tonight you just smell like....Compton."

That didn't seem too far fetched. From all of Bill's blood I had been drinking, I was probably at least 50% Compton by now. Maybe I was reaching the point of no return. I knew it wasn't considered a compliment though, neither did Eric.

"Play nice Victor. I'm sure he has some endearing qualities. Mattie is certainly one of his better acquisitions."

Only a Vampire would see another guy's girlfriend as his acquisition. I saw myself as much more than merely Bill's girlfriend by this point.

"This wine tastes funny. Like soot."

Eric and Victor looked at each other. They were having a mental conversation. I could tell. Eric slid his glass over in my direction.

"Here. Try this. You may find it more to your liking."

"Blood? You want me to drink blood? I can think of a bunch of reasons why I don't want to do that."

"Trust me little one. Take a sip."

I lifted the glass to my lips and took a swallow. It was wonderful! So sweet and satisfying. I was immediately on a high. It took me a few moments before I realized what had just happened. This was bad, this was very bad.

Eric and Victor did their mind meld thing again and looked over at me. Victor smiled.

"Just as I suspected."

Eric and Victor escorted me upstairs to the suite where our meeting was being held. It was enormous and very ornate. Felipe's suite in Las Vegas had been much the same. I suppose if you can afford that kind of thing, go for it right?

There were two kings present. I was aware that they were Russell and Bart. They had set up this meeting afterall and stood to gain a lot if Felipe were to be taken down. Just what they would gain I wasn't sure of. From the way Eric and Victor were talking, I got the impression that they would be splitting up Felipe's territory.

There were also two queens in the room. Eric told me that they represented Illinois and Iowa. Eric was not aware that Queen Phoebe from Iowa was interested in our little plan. I was thinking, "The more the merrier" if we expect to knock Felipe off the map.

Russell took charge of the meeting, introducing everyone around. I was wondering why they would even care to have little old me there. Here were 6 powerful Vampires in a room with one human-slayer-partvamp-girlfriend-of-a-vamp-investigator-from-a-small-town. I grew more and more uneasy as they were speaking. I had a terrible feeling that I was going to play a big part in the death of Felipe De Castro.

~~**~~

Matilda will not like what part she has to play in all this, but as the asset of one of my underlings, she belongs to me. I am beginning to enjoy her company. She is a hard worker and heels nicely. She listens to Bill's advice and does what I tell her to. It saddens me to think of the plan Victor has made for her. He assures me that she will return to us unscathed, but will she be the same emotionally? Humans react to this type of treachery in different ways than we do. She is afterall mostly human. For now. I do not wish to harm her in anyway, but she will need to "give a little" to lure De Castro into this trap.

I am positive she will object to her role. She will profess her love for Compton and her desire to remain true. Blah, blah, blah. It is her feelings for him that will make this all the more gut wrenching. If he hadn't gone and bonded with her, this would be considerably easier. Now he will be able to feel her disgust for her task as she will feel his. I can say that I have a small amount of sympathy for them. If Sookie were in her position, I would find any other way to make this work. She is however "Lower on the totem pole" so to speak and must do as she's told.

~~**~~

I really didn't think our little meeting was all that useful. We didn't get anything accomplished per say. I got the feeling they were just trying to check me out, size me up ya know? I walked back downstairs with Eric and Victor. None of us spoke. I pondered the fact that none of the Vampire royalty asked me anything about myself or my abilities. They mostly discussed De Castro's regime, noting the amount of states he had required and each location's Vampire population. It was almost like watching a documentary on the History Channel. No one made a peep as to any plan to take him down.

"I don't know if this is even worth me asking, but did we actually accomplish anything tonight? It didn't really seem like it if you ask me."

Victor stared at Eric for a minute, then turned to look at me.

"There are still many things that we will need to discuss. There is a plan being formulated. It is best you don't know everything until it is set in stone."

"Alright. Vampire politics. I get it. I'm not up in the 'circle'. Just don't spring it on me at the last moment if you can help it, ok?"

Victor gave me a little kiss on the cheek.

"I will do my best. Good evening Matilda"

As Victor walked away I looked back at Eric.

"We can trust him right?"

"I believe he is trustworthy in this instance little one. He has plans for you. You may not appreciate the journey, but the destination is in fact the payoff. No?"

Eric had always been straight with me before and I had no reason to doubt him, but that was the most bizarre answer I had ever heard. It made me a little nervous. I nodded to him as he walked off. My concern was short lived when I looked up and saw Bill walking through the lobby holding my sister's hand. The whole scenario was too much for me to take and I busted up laughing. Grace was carrying cotton candy and a bag of popcorn. She was wearing one of those rubbery glow in the dark necklaces. Bill was carrying a very large teddy bear under his arm.

"What in the world?" I squeaked out between laughter.

"When we got the the theater, there was a carnival in the parking lot. You were right. She's very good."


	8. Chapter 8

I realize I left this in a cliffy, but the next part is important. I need to make it perfect!!!

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chapter 8

We jumped back in our ultra cool rental car (Ha!) to drive Grace back home for the evening. Somehow I ended up in the backseat? I think my little sister has far surpassed me in the getting her way department. She had Bill right where she wanted him in 24 hours time. I was very impressed.

Bill was kind of speedy tonight for some reason and we ended up at the homestead in a mere 40 minutes. When we walked into the house my parents were beaming. They were creeping me out.

"Mattie you look beautiful tonight! That blouse is gorgeous. Where did you get that?"

"Uh thanks mom. I got it at a store back home. I needed it for my meeting."

"Well it's lovely dear. Just perfect for your evening tonight."

"Uh Yes, it worked out well."

They only acted this way when they were nervous. Mom's smile was toothier than usual and her cheeks were all rosy. My father was standing next to her holding her hand and smiling at me. Oh something was up, something was way up.

By the time I turned to look at Bill, he was gone along with my sister.

"I'm gonna go find Bill. You guys need to relax. Seriously."

I walked down the hall shaking my head, following the sound of my sister's laughter. She was lying on the end of her bed watching one of her favorite movies. Bill was sitting next to her watching rather intently. It struck me as funny seeing him look so interested. He was good with her. I imagined he was like that with his own children. It made me smile.

It had been a long, strange night for me. I was starting to need some of his attention, so I bent down as closely as possible and whispered in his ear, breathing on his neck.

"Hi honey. Quite the evening for cartoons I see."

He was immediately on his feet with his arm around me. I had received the response I was looking for. I guess I still have what it takes. Bill patted Gracie's hair.

"Goodnight my dear, sleep well."

Grace jumped up and gave Bill a big hug and kissed him on the cheek.

"Goodnight Bill. Thanks. I had fun."

Bill and I walked hand in hand back to the living room. My parents were on the couch watching tv with the dogs. Yes, all of them were on the couch. It's very crowded when that happens. They both looked up at us with their permagrins still intact.

"What do you two have planned for the rest of the evening?"

Since I was still staring sideways at my mother, Bill answered for us.

"I thought we might take a walk. It's been a long time since I've seen winter weather."

"Well you have fun!"

Bill guided me into the kitchen and out the back door. When we got outside the first thing I noticed was that I wasn't cold. It was February in Illinois, snow on the ground and I wasn't the least bit cold. We walked off the porch and down to my mother's garden. She planted vegetables there in the summer and there were grape vines. It had always been my place to go and relax when I was young. There was a bench under the tree and I would sit and read there for hours. There's a small barn behind it with a loft upstairs. When I went away to college, my parents turned my room into a guest room and moved me out here to my own little apartment. I suppose they assumed I would need the privacy while I was becoming an adult.

"You are awfully quiet tonight my darling. Didn't your meeting go well?"

"No, it did. It just wasn't very informative. I'm assuming they wanted to meet me before I did any work for them. Victor will no doubt fill me in on my assignment at a later date."

Mentioning Victor usually put Bill in a sour mood, but not tonight. He was staring into my eyes, holding both of my hands. He looked happier than I had seen him in a very long time. He was sending reassuring vibes at me through our bond. Bending forward, he lightly kissed my lips. I inhaled his smell and in doing so started moving closer to him. There has always been something about him, since the day we met, that I couldn't put my finger on. I have never been able to resist him and the closer we got emotionally the harder it was to pull away from him no matter how lightly he touched me.

I let go of him and slid my hands up his chest to his shoulders. Deepening our kiss, he wrapped his arms around me pulling me closer. It almost felt warm holding him that way. With our tongues entwined, we stood holding each other for what seemed like forever. That's how I wanted it to be, forever. My heart began to race, my body taking over for my head. I pressed myself closer, rubbing my body against his. This was the same thing that happened to me day in and day out. I was putty in his hands.

"Mattie. You're making this complicated. If you don't relax a bit, I will end up taking you out here in the snow."

"Would that be so bad? I'm not cold."

Bill had a sly grin spreading across his face.

"Maybe not, but I'm fairly certain you would be soaking wet once we got going and melted it."

I couldn't help but giggle at the thought of my mother coming out here to find one large spot of grass in an otherwise snow white garden. I grabbed Bill's hand and walked toward the barn. He scooped me up and carried me up the stairs to my room.


	9. Chapter 9

May I just say, I love these two so much! A big thank you to my muse. Your help in taking these characters on their journey has been paramount. I appreciate you more than you know.

For those of you who understand this, I capslocked in this chapter. Enjoy it!

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chapter 9

When Bill set me down, my hands went straight for his belt, whipping it off and fumbling with the button on his pants. He was just standing there, grinning at me.

"Is this what the remainder of my nights on this Earth will be like with you?"

I couldn't quite figure out if he was teasing me or if this line of questioning was going somewhere. I answered him in the only way I knew how. A way I knew he would appreciate. I let go of the button and took a few steps back.

"My, my. Am I bothering you Mr. Compton? I guess I don't HAVE to treat you to my attentions every night. Silly me, I thought you liked it."

I never broke eye contact while slowly unbuttoning my blouse. I ran my hands under the fabric, sliding my arms out of the sleeves. I removed my belt, reaching back to unzip my skirt and let it fall gracefully to the floor. Bill never moved a muscle. He watched every move I made and I could feel his anticipation. Toeing off my shoes, I stepped back to him reaching out to unbutton his shirt. I kept my self at arms length so my body was just out of reach. I was aching for him to touch me.

As I undid the last button on his shirt, he grabbed my wrists pulling me to him and planting a searing kiss on my mouth. There was nothing in the world that compared to Bill's kisses. Hard, soft, hot, wet...it never mattered to me, I loved them all. His tongue moved in a steady rhythm with mine as my emotions began swirling around me. I was trying to maintain control, but I was fighting a loosing battle. He let go of my wrists and let his hands wander to my breasts, rubbing his thumb across one nipple, he reached behind me unclasping my bra with the other hand. Sliding his hand from my shoulder down my arm, he pulled it off and onto the floor.

His lips began laying kisses down my body, starting with my neck, moving along my collarbone to the top of my breast. He stopped, grazing me with one fang. His tongue darted out to lick my nipple, laving it in tiny circles then pulling it into his mouth, suckling on me. He ran his fingers lightly down my spine as his mouth continued its journey down my stomach to my navel and beyond.

He was kneeling in front of me now, his hands caressing my thighs. He snuck one finger into the side of my panties. Twirling the elastic around, he tore them off of me reducing them to shreds. I shuddered a bit. I loved it when his rougher nature started to take over. If that was a sign of things to come, I was going to be a very satisfied woman.

His mouth continued over my hip, moving inward and licking my thigh. The soft caresses of his hands along my bottom were beginning to make me weak in the knees. Placing his hands on the back of my thighs, he blew a soft breath of air across my already soaking wet mound. I gasped and rolled my head back, grabbing him by the hair and pushing him closer to me. Most nights he would have stopped me, pulling away and forcing control over me. Tonight he gave into my plea and licked a long line through my folds and up to my nub, nipping at it with his teeth.

"Oh God Bill!" The biting was more than I could handle. "Do that again!"

He looked up at me, almost laughing with his eyes before repeating that long lick. This time he bit down softly and pulled. I jerked and had to brace my hands on his shoulders. I couldn't believe how amazing that felt. I could tell my release was building up inside of me quickly. He continued his work, sucking my nub in earnest while sliding one finger inside me. Tremors began rocketing through my center as my orgasm started to boil over.

As if trying to torture me, he pulled his finger out mid-climax and leaned back looking up at me.

"NO, Bill. Why did you stop? What are you trying to do to me!?!"

He grinned at me as his fangs ran down. Leaning back toward me, he bit down into the soft flesh of my upper thigh. As he sucked my blood, a stab of pleasure shot through me and my orgasm exploded. I was trembling and my knees began to give way. Bill had to catch me before I collapsed onto the floor. He cradled me in his arms for a moment before lifting me up and setting me gently on the bed. I watched him finish undressing, fondling every inch of his body with my eyes.

"See something you like?"

He knelt down on the bed and crawled on top of me, pressing his body down on mine.

"Is this what you want Mattie dear?"

I was biting my lip and nodding at him as he rubbed his hard length along my thigh. I had come to enjoy this dominant side of him and kept my hands at my sides letting him seize control.

"Pity, I was hoping for more. If you're too tired......."

His relentless teasing was beginning to grate on me. He knew damn well what I wanted and just how much I wanted it. I urged him on, almost begging. Piercing my eyes with his, he drove himself into me filling me to the hilt then holding perfectly still. I let out a moan, grabbing onto the sheets with my fists. He growled at me.

"IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT? BECAUSE I NEED MORE THAN THAT!"

Bill captured my mouth with a kiss that left no doubt in my mind of his intentions. He intended to claim me in a way only he could, as rough as possible and for as long as I could withstand it. He plunged high and deep inside of me again and again, pulling himself almost completely out every time. I was losing myself in his sexual frenzy, not knowing where my emotions ended and his began. This time I could feel both of our releases building as if each of them were my own. The hot tingling in my center was like fire racing through my veins as he impaled me repeatedly.

I screamed out in pleasure as Bill rolled us over placing me down on top of him again. I rocked back and forth along his hard shaft, pulling at my hair as he ran his thumbs across my nipples. He moved his hands to my waist sliding me up and down onto him, quickening our pace. I was gasping for air, trying to keep up and not wanting it to end all at the same time. I couldn't hold on any longer and I let go of my climax, golden waves of bliss screaming through my body, my muscles clenching around him.

Panting, I fell over on top of him. I was content to lie there for a moment and catch my breath, but clearly that was not in Bill's plan. He grabbed two fluffy pillows and stacked them up in the middle of the bed. Spinning me around, he arched me over them on all fours. He ran one finger down my back, tracing my spine. I couldn't help but shiver as my body tingled under his touch. His hand moved over gently cupping my bottom, rubbing it softly. He let go of me and brought it back down in a hard smack! I screamed out at him.

"BIIIIIILLLLLLLL!"

I wasn't sure what had gotten into him tonight, but I was loving it! I wiggled my body back against him begging for more. He gave my ass a squeeze and ran his other hand down, rubbing my clit with his thumb. I was already pulsing with need and he had barely begun to touch me again. He slipped two of his fingers through my folds penetrating me. I rocked back against them moaning. I was tired of being tormented and wanted him inside of me. I reached back to grab him only to have my hand slapped in the process.

"Why are you always so impatient my love? When I say not yet, I mean NOT YET. RELAX!"

I tried to listen, but it was difficult. I wanted him to be a part of me. I wanted to feel my body around him, sliding him in and out. I knew one way to get his attention. It would only take one word and he would do exactly what I wanted him to. It had worked every time.

"Yes, Master."

I could feel his want rising quickly in him after I spoke. He loved it when I said that. He shifted his weight, placing himself at my entrance. I waited another moment and said it again, looking back over my shoulder.

"See? I can behave myself....Master."

Grabbing my hips with both hands, he drove himself back into me, my body slapping against his. My anticipation had gotten the better of me and my orgasm began almost immediately, hitting me like a bullet and exploding through every cell in my body. Bill kept up his frantic pace offering me no respite for my exhaustion. I pulled myself up, resting my back against his chest continuing our rhythm. He lost control, letting himself spill into me groaning out my name.

I fell forward on the pillows bringing Bill down with me. He rolled over onto his back. He reached out to grab my hand, pulling it to his lips and kissing it softly.

"And to think, I was bringing you up here to talk."

I laughed and smiled at him as he did the same.

"You should know better than that Bill. Really, you should."


	10. Chapter 10

Back to Bill's POV

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chapter 10

My life with Mattie was anything, but predictable. I had planned a romantic evening for us so I could ask her, but once again she had me throwing off my clothes and taking her as quickly as my body allowed me to. Feeling eachother's emotions could be very good and it could also be very complicated. As long as she was within a short distance of me, I longed to touch her. Once she was close to me, I couldn't help myself.

I suppose I would have to go with Plan B. I was planning on taking her out tomorrow evening to do some sightseeing. I will have to ask her then. I'll find the perfect time. After all, the best laid plans.....If things worked out the way we thought they should instead of how they really did, I would never have her in the first place.

After we made love, we talked about everything under the sun. Or in our case, the moon. She showed me all the important things from her childhood. Things I should know about my....wife? What strange memories that word invoked. My human life was so many years ago, yet I never truly believed I would have anything similar to that again. Of course Mattie was nothing like Caroline. She was a proper lady and always knew her place. Mattie was......different. There were things she and I had done........Well we don't need to get into that. Let's leave it at that.

We also had an important discussion about her. What was happening to her body, her characteristics and physiology. I hadn't realized that her last haircut was 2 months ago. It looked exactly the same as it always had. She told me something tonight about her evening that disturbed me. She mentioned that Victor had bought her a glass of wine. (Normally that in itself would have bothered me.) When she told me what it tasted like to her, it finally hit me. I don't know why I hadn't see it before. Our lives had been so full of turmoil that I wanted everything between us to be perfectly blissful. Tonight was the first time that I noticed she tasted different to me. I didn't want to mention it and spoil the mood, but she did not taste all together human. We decided that she should not have anymore of my blood, as sad as this made her. It had become an intimate and erotic experience for both of us, but it was clearly not a good idea.

I was worried that she had reached the point of no return and that I would have no choice but to turn her. There was no doubt in my mind that she would not fight it. I knew her devotion to me knew no bounds. I was reticent however to upset her family. Yet they were so happy to see her and so accepting of us that if and when the day came maybe they would be fine. Better to prevent it though.

Mattie fell asleep shortly after 4 am and I had been watching her ever since. She looked so beautiful and peaceful lying there. It was one of the few times I could admire her and not have her expecting something from me. She certainly is an amorous woman.

It was almost dawn and I needed to rest. Mattie's father told me there was a place in the barn he had built for Mattie's previous Vampire "acquaintance". He had taken the liberty of preparing it for me earlier in the evening. I was only mildly uneasy about resting there and admit to having had a twinge of what I would call jealousy. No matter, she is mine now. Hopefully forever.

~~**~~

When I awoke the following evening Mattie was in the shower singing to herself. I got only half way into the room before she was aware I was there. She called for me to join her. I stood for a moment and considered it, but decided against it. If we ever hoped to be on our way this evening, that was not the way to get there. I waited for her out in her room, looking at her things. She had books, CD's, and movies she had collected. Looking at these things gave me more insight into her interests before we met. She was a very eclectic person. Looking around the room, I truly felt that I had found my soul mate. The one other person on this planet I could share everything with. She, was the one.

Mattie came out of the bathroom in her towel rubbing her hair dry.

"Hi baby. I missed you."

She wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled us together, kissing me softly. Her skin felt so soft against mine. I grabbed her around the waist so I could hold her close to me and feel her heartbeat. I had to keep control of myself so I wouldn't end up yanking the towel off of her and throwing her on the bed. She honestly has that kind of effect on me. I can't explain it.

"I love you. I don't tell you that as much as I should. I love you Mattie."

"What do you mean? You tell me that everyday silly."

"Well then, I should tell you twice a day."

"You already do that Bill."

"Quit arguing with me and just let me tell you again then. I love you."

"You just did."

I laughed at her and scooped her up into my arms, carrying her to the foot of her bed. She had done it again. We would be here another hour....at least.


	11. Chapter 11

We are back to Mattie again. I figured since she's the one that grew up there, it was probably best to have her lead the sightseeing. Plus we need her reaction ;-)

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 11

"Bill, stop."

Well there's a phrase I don't say often.

"Why? What's wrong? Is this not satisfying to you my darling?"

He had unwrapped the towel from my body and was kissing my skin in every place imaginable. It was very satisfying indeed. That made it all the more difficult to stop him.

"Of course it is, it's just that we'll end up missing out on all the things I want to show you while we're here. The museums stay open later for Vampire hours, but not all night. Besides, don't you think we should go back to our hotel and change?"

Bill propped himself up on his elbow and cocked his head to the side. He raised one eyebrow and stared at me.

"If I live to be 9000 years old I will never be as surprised as I am right now."

I knew he was teasing me when he flashed me a silly grin. I never told him no when he made advances toward me. It was usually the other way around.

"I understand my dear and you are right. We should be on our way. I will just go up to the house and visit a bit while you get dressed."

He kissed my lips ever so softly and got up to leave. I watched him walk toward the door. I swear that man looks good coming and going.

I rushed back to the bathroom and fixed my face and hair. I still had a few outfits left in this closet since I was never all together sure I wasn't coming back. Until I met Bill.

I threw something on and ran down the stairs and up to the house. Bill was sitting on the sofa with my father, Gracie in his lap. I giggled a bit at them. It looked so cute. Big scary Vampire wrapped around the finger of a little girl. My mother was still in intense mode like last night. She grabbed both my hands rubbing up and down them.

"Hi sweetie! You look so happy, are you happy tonight?"

I stared at my mother for a second noticing her glance at Bill. He gave his head a little shake and looked away. I swear my whole family is conspiring against me and my birthday is months away!

"What? What's the deal guys? I'm starting to feel like the only one not in your little circle here."

No one answered me. Bill set Grace down on the couch and got up, walking over to me. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to him, wrapping his arms around me.

"Are you ready to go sweetheart? We should really be on our way."

"Yes, I'm ready. Let's blow this pop stand!"

That elicited a little grin from Bill and we were out the door. We drove the car back to our hotel so Bill could get cleaned up and we were off again. We decided to save the museums for tomorrow night since Bill expressed an interest in seeing Michigan Avenue, Navy Pier and the lake front. The Pier had always held a special place in my heart. It's where my parents took us in the summer. We would ride the Ferris wheel and take a lake tour in one of those fancy yachts where they served you lunch and showed you things along the lake. It was our little family tradition. I hadn't been there in ages and I wanted to share it with Bill for the first time. We settled on going there first.

When we arrived, I grabbed his hand and walked him down to the end of the pier to show him the view. This was the first time I had ever been there at night and had kind of forgotten there wouldn't be anything to see. I started to understand how hard it must have been for Bill to only walk the earth at night. He often asked me to describe the way things looked to me in the daylight. It had been such a long time since he had been able to experience that for himself.

The lake was a vast jet black, but you could see the waves lapping up against the rocks below us. It was a bit windy and there was no one around to speak of. Winter isn't exactly the time when people like to visit here. It made for a quiet romantic spot that we could share each others company. Bill leaned up against the rail near the side of the building away from the wind, pulling me to him and wrapping his arms around me. I leaned back on his chest and relaxed into him. I could feel the soft skin of his cheek next to mine. We stood there in silence for a moment savoring our solitude.

"Mattie, this is so peaceful here with you and you are so beautiful. I'm so glad you brought me here tonight. I find myself with a constant need to hold you and tell you how much I love you. With you my life is, perfect. I would not change a thing or have it any other way."

I wriggled around in his arms so I could face him, laying my head down on his shoulder. I took a deep breath mixing his smell and the smell of the cold wind off the lake. He was right, perfect was exactly the word I would use. I wanted to stay right there in that moment for as long as I could.

"Are you comfortable my love? Maybe we should sit?"

Bill motioned to the bench next to us, moving us over to it. He sat me down and placed himself next to me taking my hands in his. He tilted his head up, his eyes meeting mine and suddenly, it hit me. It had started back at home with the constant questions about my wanting to stay with him. I had never thought of it. Last night with my parents acting like they were and I still didn't think of it. Now there I was in a dark, quiet place with no one around, a place that I have loved my whole life. It all began to make sense. I looked over at Bill knowing he had seen the light bulb click on in my head. Tears began to well up in my eyes and I squeezed his hands tighter. He fell to one knee, producing a little velvet box from his pocket.

"Mattie my darling, my love. You have swept into my life and made me whole. With you I feel this existence I lead has become worthwhile again. My soul is complete and all is right in my world. I don't want to spend another day without you as long as I walk this earth. Marry me Mattie, be my wife."

With tears streaming down my face I leaned over as Bill opened the box. Inside was the most beautiful ring I had ever seen. The center held a Princess cut diamond with smaller round stones cascading down the band. Even in the dark I could see how brilliant it was. I couldn't find any words to express how I was feeling, only nodding my head enthusiastically. Bill removed the ring from it's box, gently sliding it onto my finger. He rose and sat down next to me pulling me into his soft embrace.

"I love you."

"I love you too"

"I think this is the part where you say yes."

I laughed, reaching up to kiss his lips.

"Are you sure? Because I don't want to mess that part up."

He chuckled and pulled me closer.

"I think you can handle it."

"Ok, in that case, Yes I will marry you Bill Compton. It would mean more to me than anything in the world."


	12. Chapter 12

This chapter starts with Mattie, Then moves to Bill by request from my twitter girls. GROWL!

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 12

I couldn't stop staring at my hand for the rest of the night. I waved it, I gestured with it, I made sure to eat with it even though I am right handed. I wanted to look at that ring constantly. With my other hand, I held Bill's. I'm not sure I let go of it more than once. He took me on a carriage ride through the city. It was perhaps the most cliche' romantic thing we had ever done, but I didn't care. I loved it, I loved him so much I could barely see straight. We spent the whole night enjoying each other's company in the city I adore. It was wonderful, magical even. I wanted nothing more than to look at him and touch him, making sure I remembered every last detail of our evening. I wanted it ingrained it my memory for the rest of my life.

When we arrived back at our hotel, it was nearly 4 am. We had very little time to spend together before dawn, 3 hours at the most. To both of our surprise, we spent 2 of those hours just talking and looking at each other. I don't know if it was all the romance of the evening, but I just wanted to hold Bill and ask him questions. We talked about the fact that we couldn't really have a legal marriage in Louisiana. I'm not sure that it mattered to either of us. We knew what we meant to one and other, a piece of paper would never change that. Our bodies and souls were bound together for as long as we walked this earth.

While we were on the subject of marriage, Bill grilled me about my hopes and dreams of the perfect wedding day. Truth be told, I hadn't really given it much thought. I know that most little girls think about that from the word go, but I am not most little girls. He seemed to be more into it than I was, which isn't to say I wasn't excited, I just needed time to take it all in.

Which brings our next activity to mind. The remainder of our waking hours were spent rolling around in bed together, as was the norm. I wouldn't say it was our favorite past time, but we did have a certain knack for it. Bill began his rest for the day around 6:30. I stared at him lying there, for all intents and purposes, dead. I studied his face as he slept, the curve of his lips held my attention for quite a long time. This was it, he was the one. It seemed like quite the revelation at the time, but in actuality I had known it from the day we met.

~~**~~

I awoke at dusk to find Mattie lying curled up next to me, her arm draped across my chest. She looked peaceful and gorgeous lying there naked against me. I ran my hand back and forth down the length of her arm, caressing her soft skin. I turned my head to take in the scent of her hair, kissing her gently on the head. She stirred for a moment rolling onto her back, her arm flopping down at her side. The sheet was draped across her chest exposing one of her soft, supple breasts The small pink nipple seemed to be calling my name. I rolled over next to her cupping her breast in my hand, licking my tongue across her nipple then pulling it into my mouth. She moved her head to the side, but didn't wake. I continued my exploration of her while she slept, running my hands across her pulling away the bed sheet.

As I rubbed my hands along her body, kissing her soft skin, she began writhing on the bed. She was not awake yet, but I could tell she was beginning to become aroused from my touch. I slid my hand down between her legs running my fingers through her already slick folds. She was obviously having a very good dream, moving her head from side to side as I pushed one finger gently inside her. She called out my name and opened her eyes.

"Hello my love. Did you sleep well?"

I grinned at her knowing answering that question was the furthest thing from her mind. A sideways smile began to form as she looked down the bed at me.

"Bill, you're being a very naughty boy this evening. I like it!"

"Something told me you would."

I pulled my finger from it's hiding place and crawled up the bed, placing myself on top of her. The grin on Mattie's face told me just what kind of mood she was in. She grabbed my hair and crushed her lips to mine, darting her tongue into my mouth. We began a sensual rhythm with our mouths while my hands explored her breasts. Mattie pushed me off of her and on to my back rolling herself to sit on top of me. She was in one of her more dominate moods tonight. It was only fair, it was her turn.

She bent her body over to kiss me, sliding her tongue across my bottom lip before she ran it across one fang. She was testing the water to see if I would react. She knew I wanted to, but I let her continue her seduction as I steadily grew more aroused.

"Touch me Bill, you know you want to."

I knew her game and I wasn't playing it.

"I was waiting for you to take the lead my dear, it seemed that's what you were after. Am I right?"

She merely grinned at me and slid down my body, kissing my chest along her way. Grabbing my hard length in her hand, she began stroking up and down staring up into my eyes. She darted her tongue out running it the length of my shaft and swirling it around the end. I threw my head back on the pillow and clenched my fists. This woman could drive me crazy! She opened her mouth and took all of me as deep as I could go, sliding me in and out while her hand continued stroking me. She continued with this incredible ability of hers for quite some time as I felt my climax building inside of me. She plunged down one last time and back up nipping me with her teeth. I lost control and spilled myself into her mouth.

I composed myself while watching her walk into the bathroom. I heard the water in the tub start running. I was intrigued and got up to join her. Rubbing my body up against her back, I let one hand wander to her soft, wet folds. She was slick with her own juices which I wanted so much to taste. I slowly spun her to face me, picking her up and setting her on the edge of the tub. I lowered myself between her legs, softly biting her inner thigh. Mattie let out a moan and set her hands on the edge of the tub, spreading her legs wider. I licked my way up her leg, sliding two fingers into her, hitting her in just the right spot over and again.

"Bill, taste me."

She spoke just above a whisper. I looked up into her pleading eyes before burying my face into her soaking wet mound, sucking on her hard clit. Mattie was yelling things at me that should never be spoken in polite company. I could feel myself stiffening while she carried on. I added a third finger as I swirled my tongue around her nub, biting down softly. She cried out in painful pleasure, meeting her release and shuddering. I stood up to face her, grabbing her up into my arms and placing her in the warm water. I turned off the tap and climbed in behind her. She relaxed against me and let out a sigh.

"That was wonderful. Ready for more?"

Mattie was the most insatiable woman I had ever known. I wasn't complaining. I laid back and let her swivel herself around to face me, straddling my legs. She leaned forward placing her hands on my cheeks, kissing me softly on the lips. I returned her kiss much more forcefully, sliding my tongue into her mouth. It took only mere moments of our tongues mingling together before I was dying to enter her. I placed my hands on her hips, levering her above me and slid her down onto my hard shaft inch by slow tortuous inch.

"God Bill! You feel so good."

Buried in her to the hilt, I began thrusting her hips back and forth, water lapping up around us and onto the floor as we increased our pace. Mattie reached up to grab her breast, pinching the nipple with her thumb and forefinger. I watched as it grew increasingly more swollen and dark. I pulled her down to me, sucking the little bud into my mouth. I licked slow circles around her nipple until finally I couldn't help myself anymore. I bit down around it and sucked for all it was worth. Mattie threw her head back and let out a groan, bucking her hips faster. Her increased speed was only egging me on. I removed my self from her and spun her around, placing her hands on the end of the tub. As she gripped the edge, I drove myself back inside of her, penetrating her as deeply as possible. She arched her back and yelled my name as I plowed myself deep inside. I could feel us both nearing our release and picked up my pace, water cascading over the sides of the tub like tidal waves. Mattie growled and her muscles tightened around me pulling me into her. I thrust once more and met my release, aftershocks rippling through my body.

Pulling herself off of me, Mattie dropped her body into the tub in an exhausted heap. I picked her up and held her in my arms.

"Are you quite sated my dear?"

"Uh-huh"

I laughed at her assessment, kissing her on the temple. The water was beginning to cool, so I climbed out of the bathtub and grabbed a robe for each of us. I picked Mattie up and carried her back to bed, lying behind her with her body tucked into mine. I loved that woman. We snuggled together for a few minutes before Mattie wriggled around to face me. Kissing me softly on the lips she said, "I'm going to marry you" and giggled. I think the last evening had finally hit her. I kissed her again and said, "Yes Mattie, you are."


	13. Chapter 13

Thank you as always for the encouraging reviews and PM's. They really keep me going. Sorry it's been so long since I posted last. I kind of lost my mojo. It's a long story, but anyway we're about to get into the action part. I need to change POV's for a bit as well. Most will be Mattie, but Victor will also have his say.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp13

A short while later, we were dressed and leaving the hotel. Bill had been foolish enough to promise my mother we would come by the house tonight. I tried to explain to him what was actually involved in that. From the look on his face I could tell he had no idea what he had promised. My mother was crazy about love and weddings, there was no doubt in my mind that was what we would discuss all night.

Naturally when we arrived at the house, Grace pounced on Bill and stole him away to do her bidding. After what I had told him about my mother, I was pretty sure he appreciated my little sister all the more. There I sat in the kitchen with my mother and her piles of wedding material. Bill had given my parents a few days heads up on this whole event so she had plenty of time to gather materials. I wanted her to have fun dreaming about it, but I was starting to get my own opinion on the matter.

"Mom, I know you have been thinking about this for a really long time, but we really don't need a fuss made. It's not legal in Louisiana for us to get married anyhow, so it will be purely ceremonial. Please let me make this a simple day, it's really Bill that means more to me to begin with."

My mom cocked her head to the side and stared at me. She looked a tiny bit disappointed at first, but then a small smile began to curl up her lips.

"That's the most grown up I think I have ever heard you sound. I'm very proud of you, you know that don't you? You've picked a wonderful man Mattie. I can see it when he looks at you just how much he cherishes you and your father was thrilled that he bothered to ask his permission."

This was news to me, not that it was very surprising. After all, Bill was from a time when that was the norm and I would never expect any less from him. Still, it was very nice to hear it and it made me smile. I leaned over in my chair and gave my mom a big hug.

"Thanks mom. I love you. He is pretty great, I know. I'm kind of amazed how perfect we are for each other. He keeps me grounded and I'd like to think I liven him up a bit."

Mom and I both giggled a little when I said that. Dead jokes always struck us as a little funny and we were both into bad puns. I guess it goes with the territory. It was unfortunate that my phone happened to ring just as mom and I were starting to have some fun. Of course it was Victor.

"Hello Victor, what's up?"

"Good Evening Mattie dear. Are you and Bill still in the hotel? I need to speak with you immediately."

"No we aren't, but if it's urgent go ahead and tell me now. I have time to talk."

He sounded irritated that we weren't sitting around waiting for him to call. What did he expect? I get so little time to see my family and I was going to take advantage of every moment.

"I need to speak to you directly, that is to say face to face. It's time Compton was aware of our little plan."

I was really dreading this moment in time. I knew it was important that Bill knew we were trying to take down De Castro, but I thought we would get a little more time to enjoy our happiness. I should always know better when my plans involve Vampires. I took a deep breath and continued with Victor.

"I understand. When are we required to be there?"

"Meet me in the suite we had our last meeting in. You have until Midnight. I will see you then."

I hung up the phone and looked over to the clock on the stove. If Bill drove like a demon, which I knew he could, we could stay here another hour max. I explained to my parents in the vaguest way possible and apologized that we couldn't stay long. By this time Bill had heard me talking to Victor and came back into the room. The expression on his face gave away that he knew how I was feeling. I could try and hide my worry, but he always knew. He came and knelt down next to me and grabbed my hand.

"You seem troubled my dear. It's work related I know, when do we have to be back."

"We need to leave in an hour and p.s. , they want you there as well."

Bill didn't look surprised in the least. I'm sure he expected to be let in on things when the time was right. After all, he had probably done a lot more of this type of thing over the years than I had. He took a seat in the chair next to me and chatted my mother up a bit. He almost certainly did it to offset the negative mood I was in. There was no way we needed my parents worrying unnecessarily.

When our time was up, we said our goodbyes and left. I was thankful my family had agreed to meet us at the airport the next night to say farewell. When this was all said and done, who knows if they would ever see me again. I at least wanted them to see me walk away happy. As Bill and I drove back to the hotel I started to fill him in on the basic nuances of the plan. That was after all most of what I knew anyhow. I was fairly certain the rest would be revealed to me tonight. I wasn't looking forward to it.

~~**~~

I continually glanced at my watch between 11:30 pm and 12:00 am. Being that I was in charge of Louisiana's portion of this undertaking, I was unhappy that our star player had not arrived yet. Mattie is a very trusted associate of mine and it was not like her to be late. Alas, she arrived at Midnight on the dot. How punctual. Naturally she had brought Compton with her as requested. I never understood what she saw in him. He could offer her nothing that I could not, in fact I could offer her so much more if given the chance. She intrigued me like no woman had in a very long time. I knew I would rather enjoy bringing our cooperative part of this plan to fruition. Poor Bill. Who was I kidding? If he had managed to keep her away from all this shit to begin with, I would never have my chance at her.

"Mattie dear, on time as always. I trust you didn't have too much trouble getting yourself back here?"

"Certainly not Victor. Are we ready to begin?"

I watched her glance around the room meeting the eyes of our other confidants and nodding. She had such poise and grace. She was the perfect choice to make our plan work. Compton was the only problem. We would have to send him someplace where he couldn't get to her. The bond they share is fairly strong, he will be able to sense her and he will know what is happening. I will have to figure a way to block her from him mentally. I may know someone who can do that.

"We have come to the conclusion that there is only one way we can lure Felipe into our trap and that, my dear, is with you. He is desperate to have you for his own as you well know. I have done my best to protect you by helping to offset your work with him, but the time has come to step up our efforts"

She nodded at me in agreement. I couldn't help but notice the soft skin on her neck as it moved forward. I wanted so much to touch her.

"I understand that Victor and you have no idea how much I have appreciated it. I was afraid this would send me back to work for him and back to Las Vegas, at least for a time. I knew it was coming. So what is the project he expects me to work on?"

Here was the part I was not happy about. I wanted her to myself and it turned my stomach to think of De Castro anywhere near her, but it must be done.

"We need you to offer yourself to him, your body, your blood. This is the only way we can distract him enough to move in for the kill."

She stood perfectly still for a moment before turning her head to Bill. His mouth was in a small, thin line as she began to tremble.

"No Victor! I can't do that, I won't do that! There is just no way. Oh God, please no....."

She turned to cling to Compton who just stood there emotionless and staring at me. He knew there was nothing he could do, but what he didn't know was that I would never let him touch her. I would save her from him, be her hero and she would be mine. There was no way she was going back to Bon Temps. Ever.


	14. Chapter 14

I switched POV's back and forth from Mattie to Bill in this one. I felt the need to try and explain why he was acting like such an ass and he didn't think it was fair I wasn't telling his half of the story. The things I do for that man ;-) My twitter gals will get a kick out of some lines I "borrowed" from a friend of ours, along with the silent treatment.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 14

Bill held me all night once we returned to our room. I cried my heart out, but he never spoke. I knew he felt powerless to help me and that it drove him mad knowing anyone would ever touch me aside from him. It wasn't his fault, I wished I could get him to see that. I had chosen to show what I was capable of when Eric could see it, I had gotten myself involved in all this Vampire bullshit, yet again. It was never because of him, but there was no telling him that. Once he set his mind to something, no one could change it. We fell asleep together, still dressed and without even so much as a kiss.

The following evening, Bill rose before me, which was starting to become more and more common. He was already dressed, drinking a TruBlood and reading the paper when I found him on the couch. I draped my arms over his shoulders and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Nothing. No response at all. He continued reading as if I wasn't even there. I knew he would need time to process all of this, so I grabbed a shower. As the warm water cascaded down my shoulders, I half expected him to step in and hold me. He never came. I tried to occupy my brain with other thoughts, but it's very hard to do when you are faced with a project that kills your spirit and turns your stomach such as this one. I really needed him, now more than ever.

We moved about the room in silence packing our things. Victor had taken the liberty of changing our flight plans so we would be going directly to Las Vegas tonight. I called to tell my parents about the adjustments. I wanted them at the airport even more now. What if I didn't make it and this was the last time I would ever see them? Knowing what I know, it would be very hard to put on a happy face for them tonight.

Driving to the airport, I was met with still more silence from Bill. It was starting to irk me just a bit. What did he think this was doing to me? Did he even care? Of course when we arrived he put on the happy face for my parents, scooping Grace up into his arms and carrying her around. I was thankful that he didn't show them any worry, but pissed just the same for how deceptive he could be. This was showing me a side of him I did not very much care for, but I had known existed all along.

Another 4 hour plane ride went by without so much as a whisper from Bill. I spoke only casually to Victor about my family and he congratulated me on our engagement, apologizing for the unfortunate timing of his takeover. He had always been a good friend to me, I was fairly certain if he thought this was the time to make our move, then he was right. Las Vegas held a lot of wonderful memories for Bill and I. It was there that we solidified our bond with one and other, something I would never forget as long as I lived. Those were such happy times for us before we ended up back in the lion's den once again.

Of course we checked into the Maison de Prés and were given a suite very similar to the ones we had stayed in previously. I unpacked and got my things settled while watching Bill do the same, ignoring me. This was getting stupid and a very large part of me wanted to smack him upside the head and scream, "Are you 169, or 12!" I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing me angry, though inside I was positively seething. I wasn't entirely sure how to behave at that point and did the ticked off girl thing again, I called Victor.

~~**~~

Why is she talking to him? Doesn't she know that it displeases me for them to be so close? She is mine, this is something she should know and I should not need to constantly remind her. I am standing 5 feet away and she speaks to him as if she does not see me here. I know what he wants and that he will not stop until he has taken her from me. I never trusted him, not even when he helped her get away from Felipe's torture missions. I always saw what he was after. He will put her in a position for De Castro to have his way with her and it sickens me that I cannot stop it.

I watch her hang up the phone and set it down on the table. She glances in my direction with a sullen look on her face. Am I to assume the news he has given her is bad? There is something in me that can't bring myself to ask her. My silence will anger her to the point that she will shut me out, block me from her feelings. That is how she always responds when we fight. It is childish, but in this instance, it just may be the very best part of her personality. I do not want to feel her emotions emanating from her when she meets the king. I would sooner see a second death than feel her anguish. At some point, she will forgive me for this.

As I sit on the couch thumbing through a magazine, I can feel her anger boiling over and I know she is close to confronting me. She walks across the room and stares down at me, hands on her hips.

"William Compton, this is ridiculous! What's with the silent treatment? I'm getting pretty sick and tired of it and I have half a mind to walk out that door right now and not come back!"

I continue my feigned reading as she waits for my response. She won't be getting the one she wants.

"You may do as you please, behave however you like."

She stomps off, grabbing her phone and leaves the room. I have made her angry enough to shut me out, I cannot feel her much at all. Although it pains me to do so, I am very glad I have succeeded.

~~**~~

I stomped off down the corridor about as pissed off at Bill as I had ever been. I screamed out to the empty hallway.

"THAT ANTEBELLUM ASSHOLE"

A couple walked out of the elevator bank just as I said that and gave me a strange look.

"Sorry, undead Civil War veteran boyfriend is giving me a hard time."

I made that out to be such a casual statement that they just nodded as if it were normal and walked away. I also noticed I said boyfriend. At this point, I had no idea if the word fiance' was able to roll off my tongue. I walked onto the elevator and made my way down to the bar. I sat down and ordered a TruBlood. Let's be honest, I like the taste of it now so much better than soda or juice. I confused the hell out of the bartender when I asked if he could also get me a burger. I sat there drinking for all of a minute before Victor slid himself onto the stool next to me.

"You're troubled, I can tell. I'm sorry it's come to this, but it is truly the only way I can promise your protection for all time."

"Protection? Putting me in a position to be quite possibly raped and drained is what you call protection? That's seriously warped Vic!"

"Matilda, keep your voice down and for fuck's sake do NOT keep discussing details in the open."

I grunted at him and took a sip of my TruBlood.

"I see you're drinking it exclusively now. I could tell the other night that you were changing more than we knew possible. Compton should have been more careful with you. He gave you too much of his blood, or was it you that took too much? You seem the type that enjoys a little scratch and bite on a nightly basis."

He placed his hand on top of mine when he spoke. This was the first time I had ever felt Victor was coming on to me. Sure he was continuously flirting with me, but he did that with anything in a skirt and I began to see it as part of his personality. Bill warned me about it constantly at home, but I never listened to him. Victor was good to me, never let me get hurt, and I trusted him. He had an angle and I was just now seeing it.

"Forget it Victor. No matter how angry I am at Bill right now, that will never happen between us. So you can just put those thoughts out of your pretty little head and order yourself a drink instead."

He chuckled at me and asked the bartender for a glass of royalty.

~~**~~

I feel like a ridiculous stalker boyfriend staring at her from across the casino floor. I sit looking at her and trying to listen to their conversation. Does she want him? She is certainly sitting close enough to him that it appears that way and what in heaven's name is she drinking? TruBlood? I told her not to do that in public, she will draw attention to herself. She is already so pale that I worry she will be mistaken for one of us. I feel a small smile creep up onto my lips as she takes a bite of a cheeseburger immediately thereafter. She is not so far gone that she has given up human food entirely.

My smile leaves my face as I see him place his hand on hers. What the fuck does he think he's doing? I want to run over to them and scream at him that she is mine, but I know I cannot. Instead I get up, hands in my pockets and stroll out into the night air. As I walk alone down the strip, all I can think about is my beautiful Mattie. I realize that I cannot offer her a fancy car to drive or take her out to glamorous places all the time. I have no flashy suits like Victor and I am not the social creature that he is. I am a much simpler man. I enjoy the peace and quiet of our home, my books and my piano. Her quiet company sets me at peace most nights, even if she is a bit more spirited than I am used to. She makes me laugh and smile more often than not and holding her is my joy. I love her. I will not lose her to this Lothario whether he becomes my king or not.

~~**~~

I saw him watching from the corner of my eye. He thinks I didn't, but I always know when he's lurking around brooding. Bill can't hide much from me anymore and whether I am angry at him or not, I do love him. He's playing some stupid game by not speaking to me, but I'm sure he has a plan. I'm also sure it's dumb and mine is a better plan, but I'll let him go on thinking he has the upper hand in the situation. After all, if I'm going to marry the guy I should get used to letting him think he's getting his way.


	15. Chapter 15

Once again, I want to thank all of you for your encouraging reviews and pm's. I love writing this story and am so glad I have people that like reading it as well. We are mostly in Mattie's POV for this one, but Victor has a say as well. The fight begins in this chapter, but please do not hate me for the cliffie. I know, I'm bad.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 15

Another night had passed by without us speaking to one and other. As much as I needed Bill to help keep me centered at that moment, I was more than a little glad that I was blocking his obvious anger and fright. It would have been a serious distraction and I really needed to be on my game. I dressed in my usual all black, batshit-crazy slayer attire to meet Victor and have him take me to Felipe. I hated dressing this way, but had to admit I looked like bait. I cringed at the thought, moving to stand beside Bill in our room. Emotionless, he glanced over at me and away again. Normally this would be the time when he would throw me on the floor and tear every stitch of my clothing off to have his way with me. Part of me expected it, part of me desired it, and another very large part of me....hated him at that moment.

When Victor arrived for me, he brought two very large Vampires with him that I can only describe as goons. Each one stood at least 6'5" and weighed maybe 300 lbs. I never realized Vamps needed muscle, but I guess the bigger the guy? I always thought it was age, maybe it's both or perhaps he just wanted to look like he belonged in Las Vegas. With Victor, there's always a lot of theatrics. We were escorted about 50 feet from our door before each of the goons took one of Bill's arms. He was swiftly turned around and walked in the other direction. I panicked.

"Victor, where are they tak...."

He held a finger up to my lips to silence me.

"It is for your protection Mattie. Compton may try and stop our plan because of his..._love_ for you. We can't have that now can we?"

He spat out the word love as if it were evil. I turned back to look at Bill walking away from me. As I turned away, I noticed him staring in my direction, ice cold daggers piercing me with his eyes. I knew he was making a feeble attempt to piss me off and I started to cry. He would never even try if he didn't love me.

~~**~~

I entered the room with Mattie on my arm, gliding with her out toward the balcony. De Castro was sitting near the ledge talking on his phone, I stopped before the door way as to give him his privacy. No matter though, I could still hear him and was uninterested in his dealings. I took a moment to look Mattie over. She was beautiful, perfect in every way. Her pale skin sparkled in the moonlight that bled into the room, highlighting the line of her jaw and the hollow above her collarbone.

I began to drift into my own mind, imagining my hands caressing her shoulders and down to the small of her back. I wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her body tightly to mine, nuzzling against her cheek. Feeling her jerk back away from me I tightened my grip on her, pressing myself to her core. She wriggled against me for a moment before meeting my gaze, her green eyes boring holes into me. Careful to guard her from my fangs, I captured her mouth in a deep kiss, sliding my tongue across her lower lip. She opened her mouth ever so slightly, darting her tongue out to meet mine, moaning softly with need. We spoke no words, falling into a rhythm of swirling tongues, her breasts heaving against my chest. Pushing her toward the wall, I ran my hand up her thigh beneath her skirt, ruthlessly rubbing my hands on her skin while kissing down her jaw and onto her neck. Her teeth grazed my earlobe, sucking it into her mouth and snapping it back out again. Clothes began to tear from her body with the help of my impatient hands.

Gazing down at her soft pink breasts, want began to take me over. I fumbled with my belt, whipping it off and pulling open the button of my slacks. Mattie placed her hand on my hip, sliding them down to the floor where I kicked my feet free. She began smiling a wicked little grin as she unbuttoned my shirt sliding it down over my shoulders and cascading down my back. We fell to the floor. With our legs tangled together, I rolled her over on top of me grabbing her hips and levering her above me. Leaning down to scratch her fingers along my chest, she grinned and spoke only one word. "Now." Pulling her down onto me, I thrust myself into her warmth, rocking her hips over mine.

Mattie's head fell back as she groaned and moved with me. Reaching one hand between us, I began swirling circles around her clit with my thumb. She moaned my name causing me to stiffen even more as I pulled her up and down. She tightened around me meeting her release and rolling to the floor, pulling me on top of her.

"Victor!"

Her voice was all I could hear as I shut my eyes and buried myself in her once again.

"Victor.....Victor? Are you listening to me?"

I shook my head. Mattie was standing next to me waving her hand in front of my face.

"Yoohoo! Earth to Victor. Are you paying any attention to what's going on here? The King just asked to see you and it's probably not a good idea to keep him waiting."

She looked at me as I got my bearings, trying to decipher what was wrong with me. That was perhaps the most vivid vision I had ever had in all my many years.

~~**~~

Victor was staring off into space when the King finally called to us. I had never seen him with so little focus before, almost as if he were daydreaming. He escorted me toward the balcony and I started to feel my nerves take over and muscles tighten up.

_Relax girl, you can do this. Victor is never going to let anything happen to you. You can trust him remember?_

"Matilda dear, so lovely to see you again."

De Castro's voice irritated me more tonight than it ever had before, perhaps because I knew what he had in mind for me that evening. I sat watching him discuss daily matters with Victor for nearly 30 minutes before we all returned back inside. I didn't quite understand why this was taking so long. If I were the King of a large area about to make a conquest out of a much desired woman, I really don't think I'd be stopping to chit chat about the daily routine. Victor finally got up and began to excuse himself.

"Your Majesty, I will take me leave now so you and Miss Von Teller can be better acquainted." He nodded in both our directions and began to leave.

"Nonsense Victor, you shouldn't leave."

Victor turned back to De Castro with a rather stunned look on his face. It was one I had never seen a Vampire make before.

"I believe it is you that desires Matilda more than I, or am I wrong in assuming this?"

"No Your Majesty, you are not wrong. I do desire her, very much."

Something told me that this was not part of Victor's plan. Maybe it was the look on his face or the way he stared only at me as he spoke, but I could tell we were in a lot bigger trouble than I once thought. The King was on to us. I wasn't sure how I knew, but it suddenly clicked like a light bulb going on in my head.

"How long did you think it would take me to hear of your little plan Mr. Madden? Did you honestly think I would not be wise to your intentions? I have known this for quite some time and waited only for the right moment to strike."

"Your Majesty, I think you mistake my motives. I brought her here for you as requested. What could I possibly hope to gain by this?"

"SILENCE! I will not sit here and listen to you lie to me. You will both suffer for your insubordination. Take her Madden, claim her as your own. Do it, now!"

Victor only stared harder into my eyes, almost as if he were trying to help me understand what he was planning. I stood slowly and moved toward him, taking his hand in mine and hoping we could somehow figure a way out of this together. Surely with our combined strength, Victor and I could take Felipe out. Quickly trying to figure a way out of the situation, I turned, but my head began to get hazy, like a fog had rolled through the room. I could only see Victor standing in front of me, removing his jacket and tie. Without any control of my hands, I began to undress myself. I couldn't stop it from happening.

"You see, I possess the gift of influence. All Vampires have their special quirks, this is mine. She shall be yours Madden, just this once and then I will kill you and take her for my own."

At that moment, things became painfully clear. This was the end of my life. Bill would never be able to heal from all of this and I'm not sure I would want to live if he could not be with me. I was about to be the victim of not 1, but 2 men claiming me. The floodgates of my emotions spewed from me and I began to cry, standing there naked in Victor's embrace. Our skin pressed to one another and our lips and tongues entwined. I experienced a range of emotions from disgust, to confusion, love, and lust and all things in between. Slowly rising up in my being was an anger I never knew lay within me. It was so different than the nights I fought Eric and the many times I took out my marks, it was pure unadulterated hatred from the pit of my stomach. The green of my eyes was reflecting in Victor's as we rubbed our bodies together. Steadily growing angrier, I could feel a second presence in my mind, he was here and mad as hell.

Suddenly I was able to gain control of my voice and screamed for Bill at the top of my lungs. That was the first time in days I had felt him, he was so near me. I heard the door fly open with a loud crack as he blew it off of its hinges. That was the moment the fog began to lift and I pushed myself out of Victor's grasp. Two daggers flew through the air at me, spiraling into my hands. Unsheathing them, I turned to the stunned De Castro slashing him in the chest and arms. Bill and Victor beagn to lay waste to the Vampire guards that came to the King's aide.

Channeling every bit of rage I could muster, I stabbed Felipe in any spot I could reach. He lunged at me, knocking me to the floor and biting down into my shoulder. His fangs tore away a sizable chunk of my flesh, leaving me screaming in pain and trapped beneath him. Kicking my feet out, I pushed as hard as I could to free myself, but found I was too weak to move and losing blood fast. My consciousness began swirling around me and my sight grew dim.


	16. Chapter 16

This chapter starts in Bill's POV since Mattie is unconscious, then we will switch to her. They have to get back home quick to make up in chapter 17 *wink*

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp16

"SHE IS MINE!"

Rage was the only emotion I could feel watching my mate writhing on the floor in pain. Acting only on instinct, I leaped onto Felipe's back and ripped him off of Mattie. We bit and scratched at each other, rolling across the floor, laying waste to the furniture and the glass balcony doors. Feeling my bones breaking as we beat each other into the concrete, I only thought of her and grew steadily angrier.

From the corner of my eye, I watched as Victor smashed an already broken chair over his leg and ran toward us. Once I was able to pin De Castro in a position where Victor could reach him, he plunged the chair leg down into his heart. The last thing I saw before turning to attend to Mattie was the ashen face of my once King, looking more surprised than imaginable.

Cradling Mattie's still naked body in my arms, I began healing her wounds. The bites were severe and the largest on her shoulder had caused her a great deal of blood loss. She was still very much alive, but unconscious. Biting into my wrist, I poured the blood onto her body and into her open mouth. Her scratches were already beginning to heal on their own from her rapid repairing physiology coupled with the blood I was giving her. She gasped and choked as she began to come to, grabbing my wrist and drinking my blood. I stopped her before she had taken too much, but it was quite the struggle to tear her from my wrist.

Victor found a blanket in the bedroom to wrap Mattie's body in and began dressing himself. The fact that I found them holding each other like they were would need to be dealt with, but now was certainly not the time. Victor would need this time to begin putting together his new regime, he would not notice me leaving the suite with her. I carefully picked her up and carried her back to our room. Lying her down on our bed, I held her in my arms the remainder of the night as she slept.

When I awoke the following evening, Mattie was not beside me. Immediately fearful, I snapped up out of bed and probed through my feelings for her. She was close and she was sad. I walked out into the other room to find her in her robe snuggled on the couch, holding her knees. As I approached, she turned her head to look at me and I noticed her crying. Her tears were not terribly alarming for what she had been through, but they themselves were slightly unnerving for the fact that they were pink.

Sitting down on the couch, I pulled Mattie into my lap and pushed her head down to rest on my shoulder.

"You came for me. You came to rescue me and I was betraying you. I was wrapped around Victor, rubbing myself against him."

She spoke in a halted tone in, gasping between sobs.

"I don't deserve your love and affection, Bill. I should have been able to stop myself, I should have fought harder."

I had my suspicions that she was not in control of her actions, but hearing her confirm it was music to my ears.

"Shhhhh Mattie, sweetheart. That was not your fault Felipe controlled you that way. I blame Victor for not knowing he had that power to begin with, or perhaps he did know?"

The last thought began to make me angry thinking Victor might have chosen not to tell us about Felipe's gift. It could have been for many reasons, but I tended to believe he was hoping to use it for his own personal gain. I had never truly trusted Victor around Mattie and now I trusted him even less. As she sobbed in my arms I felt increasingly guilty about the way I had treated her in the last few days. I had good reason, but I fear it was misguided. Never mind though, we are here together now and she is safe in my arms. I will never let harm come to her again so long as I walk this Earth.

"I was so happy to see you, to feel you again Bill. You have no idea how awful it felt to be forced to do something in that way. I wish I could have have stopped and most of all, I hate that you saw us together like that. Can you ever forgive me?"

"Darling, did you enjoy being with Victor?"

"No! Of course not! How could you even think that?"

"Then there is nothing to forgive."

Pulling her closely, I wrapped my arms around her body and held her. She set her head on my shoulder and sobbed for what seemed like hours. I drifted into downtime, letting her relax against me.

~~**~~

I guess I cried myself to sleep in Bill's arms because the next thing I knew, it was 1 am. Wriggling mysef from his grasp, I stood up and surveyed myself in the mirror. I had pink stains down my face. Where the hell did those come from?

"They are from your tears, darling."

I spun around to face Bill, staring at him in disbelief.

"Come again? My tears? Why would me tears be pi..."

I stopped mid sentence. I knew exactly why my tears were pink. They weren't completely bloody, but just enough to tinge the normal color, or lack there of. I was a lot more Vampire than I used to be. What did that make me? Bill answered my question before I even had a chance to ask it.

"I do not know how much of a human you are any more, Mattie. You are not a Vampire either. This will require more research and as I have been saying, you simply cannot have any more of my blood. I had to heal your wounds, but we cannot take any more chances or I will be forced to turn you."

This was old news. Bill liked to rehash the whole scenario and it was getting tired. He had been mentioning this to me since, I don't know, FOREVER. He still seemed to let me bite him or heal me more and more as time went on. He was beginning to seem like the boy who cried wolf. Drama queen!

"Baby, you say that non-stop and I understand your concern, but I have no intention of letting you turn me. I love you and I want to be with you, but something about you being completely in charge of me doesn't set too well. Not to mention the fact you'd sort of be my father and that would kind of ruin the whole hot sex thing for me."

Bill let out a sizable laugh at my comments. I couldn't help it, that's just what came to mind when I thought of a Vampire's maker. I realized that most Vampires had sexual relationships with their makers, but it still seemed weird to me.

"In that case, I shall have to promise to keep you the way you are, because I intend on making love to you as often as possible once you are healed."

That statement shouldn't have surprised me as much as it did. Bill and I were never lacking in that department, but since we had just fought I wasn't expecting him to be thinking it so soon. Not sure why, since looking at each other for too long usually had us tearing up the stairs to our room. If we even made it that far, sometimes the poor stairs took the brunt of our enthusiasm for each other. I peeled off my robe and let it drop to the floor.

"It's early Bill and I feel just fine."

I watched his eyes travel from mine, down my body as his fangs slowly ran down.

"I can see that you are fine, although I wonder if you are capable of keeping up with me tonight. It has been quite a few days since I have taken you and I imagine I could get quite riled up."

He bent down and picked my robe up off the floor, putting it back on my shoulders. He was clearly too afraid to hurt me and I wasn't going to push the issue. We snuggled up again on the couch and turned on the TV. Watching a movie wasn't exactly what I needed at that moment, but it would have to do. At least I had Bill back, holding me and loving me again, not that he had really ever stopped. I felt a sense of relief that it was all over and we could go home to Bon Temps and finish living our lives again. Together.


	17. Chapter 17

I am flopping back and forth between the love birds again. I'm having a little trouble taking them where they need to go, so bear with me on the short chapters.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 17

I just wanted to go home and get back to normal. Nothing else mattered to me as I threw all of our belongings in the suitcase the following evening. Bill was puttering around the room collecting his things, neatly folding them and getting himself organized. We are such different creatures, Bill and I. It's amazing how we fit together so well. I looked down at the ring on my hand and smiled.

"We have a few hours before our flight takes off, baby. I'm packed and ready so if you're interested, I think I know how to waste a little time."

Bill turned around and smiled at me, then continued packing. I am not one to give up so easily, so I moved a little closer to him and started trying to work him up a bit. I ran my hand down his back, lightly scratching him with my nails. He tensed a bit, but nothing more. I was starting to get aggravated since I don't much care for the sex brush off.

"What's the deal, Bill? It's not like you to shut me down this way and I can honestly say that I am not too excited about it!"

Turning around to look at me, he gave me the same smile and put his arms on my shoulders. That seemed fatherly to me and I made a face at him.

"It's not that I do not desire you, because you know that could not be any further from the truth. My reason is entirely different from that."

That was one of the things I hated most about Bill. He would give you just enough information to quasi explain himself and then stop. Most of the time, I felt like a child that had candy dangled in front of them and then pulled away. There was no arguing with him, he wouldn't budge no matter what I did. I could continue my fruitless attempts to seduce him, but once his mind was made up there was no point. Turning around, I walked away from him and finished packing. We were done cleaning up and ready to go when Bill received a call. He spoke softly and quickly, then snapped the phone shut. I knew it was pointless to ask, but I did anyhow.

"Is everything ok?"

"Yes darling, it is not a concern for you. It was Victor."

Victor calling Bill was odd, it was very odd. He called me nearly every day, but to my knowledge had never called Bill. I wondered if it had anything to do with our unfortunate incident the other night or if perhaps he wanted to speak with him in regard to Felipe's death. They could need to get their stories straight to avoid any kind of repercussions for their actions. Based on the fact that we were backed by so much Vampire royalty, I thought they were safe. Something was nagging at the back of my brain.

"Bill, I know that you don't want to tell me what's going on and that's fine. Believe me when I say I am used to it by now. Just do me a favor and let me know if you are in any kind of danger because you came to protect me."

"Mattie, as I said before, it is not a concern for you. I will be fine, I need to go speak with Victor now. I will tell you this. Among the many things we will be discussing is your place in his new regime. I want you to know that now so there are no surprises."

Bill walked over and placed a small kiss on my cheek before leaving the room. I stood there quietly. Did that mean that Victor was making a play to keep me here? I trusted him through all of this and so help me, I was not leaving Bill without a fight.

~~**~~

"Absolutely not, Compton. I have no intention of keeping her here with me."

I did not believe Victor Madden as far as I could toss him, he had never given me reason to.

"Then we will be allowed to leave tonight, no questions asked? Why do I find that hard to believe?"

For a small town investigator to speak the way I was to the King, was unheard of. I did not care. I would fight for Mattie no matter what happened.

"Maybe not tonight, I still need to speak to Matilda regarding the events of De Castro's death. Her statement is imperative so we do not end up in a tribunal for our actions. Regardless of the fact that we orchestrated a hostile takeover, this could still happen.

I was aware of that fact, but I was unsure why Mattie could persuade anyone to believe Victor. Why not the other kings and queens? I did not question Victor when he asked to see Mattie at midnight. There was also no chance in hell I was letting her meet him alone, not after what I had seen of them together. The night was wearing on and if I was going to protect her, I had to act fast.

I left the suite and made my way back to my beloved. She was waiting for me in our room, expecting me to tell her precisely what Victor said. She is smart and knew he would not let her go so easily. Reaching out to hold her, I explained my plan. If it was one thing the Vampires of Las Vegas obeyed, it was human law. Their interests were far too valuable to jeopardize.

"Bill, do you think that will work?"

"I have a fair amount of confidence that it will. The plans you and I have orchestrated to remain together don't seem to fail us, why should this be any different? We do need to go now though, it is nearly 8. We don't have much time."

She nodded at me and took my hand, walking us toward the door. I stopped just as she turned the knob and pulled her to me.

"Mattie, I won't let him keep you. You are.....mine."

She smiled and softly kissed my lips.

"I am yours, just be careful how much you throw that around, Bill. I'm also mine."

Mattie winked at me and laughed before opening the door and leading us out to the elevator.

~~**~~

We held hands and looked at each other only half listening to what was being said. Bill's eyes seemed so deep and neverending, I couldn't help but get lost in the dark pools staring back at me. I studied the arch of his brow, the way his nose sweeps down in between. I seldom stop and truly admire him for the beautiful creature he is. He is mine, for all time. Being together was what we both wanted, no questions asked, no qualifications or limitations on the matter. It was something I knew was meant to be from the moment we met, I could never explain why. Bill's hold on my emotions grew stronger with each passing day, we were truly bonded in so many ways. He rubbed his thumbs across the backs of my hands as we stood there, lost in each other. I never even heard the words spoken, before he reached out to kiss me. My lips meeting his in the first kiss we would share in our new bond.


	18. Chapter 18

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 18

"It is 11:45 darling, we should really get dressed and go upstairs."

"We just got here. I've had you all to myself in here for less than an hour and I find that wholly unfair."

I ran my hand down Bill's chest, swirling my fingers across his naked skin. I was pouting a little bit. Why was it that whenever we got comfortable we had to be someplace? Bill shot me that sexy sideways smile of his, the one that makes me putty in his hands.

"We can come back to bed you know, we are not required to stay away from each other tonight. In fact, I believe it is customary that we are quite the opposite."

"Fine, but you need to make it up to me."

Rolling over to the edge of the bed, I plopped my feet on the floor. Why did Victor really need to see me anyway? I was sure he had some phony reason that we were about to thwart. After everything I had been through with him recently, I was all too happy to rain on his parade, King or not. Furthermore, was he going to be the King of Louisiana? That was a job I always thought would defer to Eric once De Castro was dead. I suppose it remains to be seen.

By the time we arrived at Victor's suite, I had second guessed myself about twenty times. Victor had always been a friend to me and I really didn't know what to say to him. I didn't fear him and I certainly didn't think he would hurt me, but I wasn't sure how his new found power would affect him. Being as angry with him as I was, I knew that there was no way we could ever be friendly, but I was also not about to be anything less than cordial. My status as Bill's bonded mate had gotten us this far, let's see how my new title worked in our favor.

We were greeted immediately by Victor's new Royal bodyguards, two smallish yet ancient female Vampires. They led Bill and I into the Living room, I took a seat on the couch while Bill paced the floor behind me. We waited mere minutes before Victor glided into the room in what appeared to be both an expensive and quite new suit. He took a seat beside me and reached out for my hand, looking down at my left ring finger and smirking. At the same moment, Bill placed his left hand on my shoulder in plain view of Victor's gaze. He looked up at Bill knowing his cards had been trumped and yet he seemed to expect it. He shrugged.

"Neither of you ever amazes me, but I am sure you know that. You acted quickly, just as I was certain you would. Being that you are now legally joined, I am left no choice but to abandon my pursuit of Mat....your wife. This does not in any way mean she will no longer be in my service. I do still have plenty of work that the lovely Mrs. Compton is able to complete for me."

That last sentence made me happier than I had been in days. I had to stifle a giggle when Victor called me by my new name. It wasn't that I didn't realize that's who I was, it was just that no one had said it out loud yet, not even Bill.

"Vict....Your Majesty, I do understand that MY wife had a contract with Felipe De Castro, but he has met his second death. She never signed anything stating she would work for you upon his death. I do not see how you can force her into a life of servitude doing your bidding."

Bill was in rare form tonight, extremely mouthy for his status and ridiculously posessive. More so than usual, I mean. He had a virtual death grip on my shoulder that was starting to burn a little. Victor chuckled at him as if he found Bill of no consequence to him and frankly he shouldn't. The respect Victor was giving Bill was merely out of affection for me. Why these two men found me so downright amazing was beyond me, but I sat quietly and let them duke it out.

"Servitude? Compton, you have a flair for the dramatic. Mattie will be properly compensated for all the work she will do as part of my regime. I have taken the liberty of writing a contract that I believe suits both our needs quite well. You do understand that being your superior, I could force you to remain here in Nevada? The terms I am offering you do not reflect that and will allow you both to return to Bon Temps provided she comes when I call. I am not unreasonable, I am choosing to allow you your lives together because I....frankly Bill, I am in love with your wife."

Those words smacked into me like a Mack truck. Vampires don't often admit to loving anything let alone a human. Here I am little human me with not one but, two Vampires professing their love for me. My shoulder was starting to feel numb from the anger Bill was suppressing and channeling into his hand. I decided it would be wise to give my muscles and skeletal system an out and say something. I attempted glancing over my shoulder at Bill.

"Ok guys, can I make my statement now? Honey, your hand is about to break my clavicle. Victor, I can't say I'm shocked. I knew how you felt all along, but I never wanted to address it and ruin the good working relationship we had. I have no qualms about working for you provided Bill gets to read through the contract completely and change it if necessary to make himself comfortable. I won't make a big deal out of it, I just want to live my life and I do believe you when you say that you will let that happen. At least I do for now."

Bill removed his hand and not a moment too soon, I was sure I could hear cracking. Victor handed him the contract without saying another word. We spent maybe twenty minutes sitting there in silence as Bill poured over every last detail. He made a few corrections, took some notes, and signed it before nodding at me to read and sign. I was happy to oblige, I just wanted to get the hell out of there and back home. Writing my name was kind of a hoot. I took the pen and began scribbling, Matilda Von.....oops! Matilda Compton.

Victor offered us his private jet to depart immediately, but being that we would not arrive home until past daybreak, we declined. Bill didn't want to travel during the remainder of our night and then be stuck in a coffin away from me for an entire day. He could be rather sweet when he wanted to be, but I was fairly certain that sweet wasn't in his agenda for tonight. Thank god because my libido was positively starving!

We left Victor knowing that this was far from over, but we would at least be afforded some peace, however temporary it might be. Bill carried me all the way back to our room and straight to bed. The several hours remaining before dawn were the most exhausting, exhilarating, and satisfying of my life. Lying there enjoying utter bliss, I allowed my husband to indulge in every part of me. Naturally he broke his new cardinal rule of not letting me have his blood, but we could fight about that later. That was one night I never wanted to be marred with any form of unhappiness.


	19. Chapter 19

This was a hard chapter. I know I haven't given you guys the BMN lately and I'm sorry about that. I hope this makes it up to you! Why waste the hotness? I mean seriously? I also decided half way through it to change perspective. I had some new inspiration I wanted to try out. (Go Belles!)

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 19

Several weeks had gone by since we left Las Vegas. Bill and I seemed to be settling into married life just fine, although it really wasn't any different than the way we lived before. I will admit that our first few nights at home we barely left the house. Bill was extremely possessive of me, both my body and my time. I could hardly complain about it though, he kept me satisfied, sated, and exhausted enough that we barely spoke. He called it our honeymoon, yet promised me that we would take the time out to travel after my family comes for the official ceremony. That was the furthest thing from my mind. I really didn't want to go through all the pomp and circumstance, but it was important to Bill and I wanted to make him happy.

Tonight we went out together to buy True Blood and a small amount of food for me. The little things we did as a couple seemed oddly normal for us being supernatural and all. The employees at the stores in and around Bon Temps had gotten used to seeing us together and treated us no differently than any other husband and wife running their errands. The thing about us was that we drank blood and never came out before dark, otherwise we were very normal.

Upon arriving home, I proceeded to empty our bags, put away the dry cleaning, and check our messages. Bill has made me increasingly more organized since he is so neat and tidy all the time. Bill sat down at the piano and began playing while I worked. It was nice to have something to listen to while I was busy, even if Chopin wasn't really my cup of tea. I'm more of the loud Depeche Mode type, but he played so masterfully it was nice to listen to none the less. I seldom play our piano despite the fact that my mother forced me into 12 years of piano lessons and I do in fact play quite well. Bill plays many more classical pieces while I tend to prefer jazz, I am a bit more uptempo than he is in life. Or death, I guess is more appropriate.

I walked into the living room after I finished working, sitting down next to Bill and giving him a kiss on the cheek. He stopped playing.

"Why did you stop, Bill. It was beautiful and very nice to listen to while I was working."

"I no longer wish to play, the music was affecting my mood. Perhaps you could play me something more upbeat?"

He arched his eyebrow as he asked. When he does that, I am sort of forced to comply since I can't resist that look. I shrugged and scooted over a bit.

I hadn't played in a while, so I chose a piece I was very comfortable with. Bill was seldom the critical type, yet him sitting so close made me more than a little bit nervous. I relaxed my fingers and began playing. The notes flew quickly from my fingertips as they slid effortlessly across the keys. Bill leaned over and placed his hands on my shoulders.

"Relax, my dear. You are tense and it is affecting the tone."

The feeling of his hands caressing my body was even more distracting than I had expected it to be. I struggled to keep my fingers from missing notes as he massaged my shoulders and down to the small of my back. Was he doing this on purpose? Most likely he was, he knew just how to push my buttons.

"That feels wonderful, your hands....."

The words weren't really coming at that point once he began blowing his cool breath onto my skin and nuzzling his lips along my neck. I felt a fang graze my flesh and I hit a few wrong notes. I knew where this was going and that I would certainly not be playing any other songs.

"It would be so easy right now, you know."

His mouth was open, fangs fully extended right next to my neck. I let out a soft moan and stopped playing.

"I'm finished with the piece."

Bill growled softly at me and spoke in a stern tone.

"I am not yet finished with my peace."

I turned my head to him and his mouth captured mine in a deep kiss, carefully guarding his fangs from scraping my lips. I melted in to his arms, pressing myself into his chest. It took barely a moment before we were on our feet and making our way to the couch. Bill fell backwards pulling me down with him, running his hands under my shirt. He was feverishly rubbing at my breasts as I straddled him lying there on his back.

"You're over dressed."

I stared down at him grinning and fumbling with his belt. He muttered something incomprehensible, tearing the clothes from my body and leaning up to take my breast in his mouth. I closed my eyes, my head rolling forward from the feeling of his tongue running concentric circles around my nipple. Bill's hands found there way to my back, softly running his fingertips along the length of my spine and up to my shoulder blade.

Adrenaline pumping through my veins, I barely realized that I had torn the shirt from Bill's chest and was making short work of his pants. I ran my nails along his arm, he groaned and flipped me over on my back, crashing my head down on the couch. I slid my legs slowly up his sides, rubbing along his cool skin and wrapped them around his back. Pulling him against me, I crushed our mouths together, sliding my tongue across his lip to his jaw line and up to his earlobe.

"Mattie, FUCK!"

He groaned, I scraped my teeth along Bill's earlobe as I released it from my mouth. Lifting his head up, his dark eyes staring into mine, he drove himself into me. I screamed out in painful pleasure, squeezing my legs tighter around him. We moved with each other in a frenzied rhythm, grinding our bodies together with each thrust he gave me. Biting, scratching and screaming; pounding our flesh against one and other until my senses gave way. Bill bit into my neck just as my body met its fevered pitch and I met my release, waves of heat cascading over my skin.

~~**~~

I looked down into Mattie's soft green eyes just as she completed her climax and opened them once more. I was not willing to let her relax just yet, there was so much more pleasure I was able to give her. Sliding my arms under her, I lifted myself to kneel. Her legs still wrapped around me, our bodies still joined, her wet heat enveloping me. She relaxed in my arms and her lips formed a soft smile as she spoke.

"That was nice."

"Nice? I am sorry, but I am not willing to accept that. It clearly means I have not done my best to satisfy you, my dear."

I winked at her and she laughed, pulling her legs from my back and removing my body from hers. The scent of her still heightened arousal echoed through the air all but begging me to claim her yet again. Mattie ran one finger down my chest, passing my navel, circling her hand around my still hard length and squeezing. She began stroking me softly, pressing her breasts against my chest and laying feather light kisses along my jaw. I was not content to move slowly this night and grabbed her shoulders, spinning her around and placing her up against the back of the couch. Her quiet moans were awakening something in me at that moment I had seldom felt in my life, true want. Unadulterated, blissful, passionate want.

"Bill, I want more."

Four words I had heard Mattie speak many times, but tonight meant more to me than they ever had. I eased my body behind hers, sliding against her legs. Bending over her back and settling my lips against the back of her neck, inhaling the scent of her hair. She was breathing deeply, breasts heaving, body delighting in my touch. Nipping at her skin, she began to moan again and I could waste not a moment more. I forced myself into her, pounding for all I was worth, bloodlust and passion overwhelming me. I watched as her hands gripped the fabric of the couch, her knuckles growing increasingly whiter the harder I thrust into her. I placed both hands on her shoulders, pulling her back toward me, never slowing our pace. Running my hands down her sides and under her arms, I cupped one breast with each of my hands, sliding her nipples through my fingertips. Mattie reached back grabbing two fistfuls of my hair, screaming out my name. Opening her mouth to speak, she forced the vein in her neck to surface. I bit down hard, sucking the sweet blood from her and sending myself over the edge. We climaxed together, her muscles clenching around me as I spilled myself into her, waves of bliss rushing back and forth across both of our bodies, echoing through our bond.

As I licked the wounds on her neck, I held her closely to me, cradling her body as if she were the most precious gift in the world. I lay back on the couch, her body on top of mine, weaving my fingers through her hair. She was mine, she belonged to no one else and no force on Earth would take her from me without me giving my life to prevent it. Mattie grabbed the blanket we had thrown to the floor in the heat of the moment, draping it across us. It seemed decidedly ceremonial since neither of us felt the change in temperature. I believe she enjoyed the fact that we were snuggled together, alone in our home, wrapped up in a blanket. To me, it felt very human and I enjoyed that quite a bit.

"Darling, we could retire to the bedroom where we could be more comfortable if you would like?"

"What are you saying Mr. Compton? Are you telling me you aren't finished with me yet?"

She giggled and nuzzled her head into my chest.

"Mattie Compton, I know you far too well. I do believe it will be you that decides you are not quite finished with me."

Cradling her in my arms, up the stairs we went.


	20. Chapter 20

Back to Mattie

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

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Chp 20

I awoke at a strange time the next afternoon, that was something that seldom happened to me any more. I wriggled out of Bill's grasp and made my way into the bathroom. Splashing water on my face, I looked up at my reflection in the mirror. I was ridiculously pale. My hair appeared darker and my eyes appeared greener than I think I had ever seen them. I opened my mouth to brush my teeth and made my nightly fang check. Bill laughed at me when he caught me doing that once and told me that it wouldn't happen that way, but he had no way of truly knowing that for certain.

Mattie was now officially a Slayer/Vampire hybrid anomaly. The list of my extraordinary physical and emotional traits was growing quite long and Bill had even gone as far as making me a little Venn Diagram to display our commonalities. That's my geek, always quick with a study aide. We frequently discussed making me a Vampire and just making things less complicated, but the option never seemed desirable to either of us.

I didn't want Bill to turn me, mostly because I didn't want him to have that kind of power over me, not that I thought he'd ever abuse it. He'd told me some stories about his maker, Lorena, and what a demanding and dominating bitch she was. He also confessed that he liked it for quite a long time. I made sure to take advantage of that little nugget of information about ten minutes later. Needless to say he was a happy Vampire for the remainder of that evening.

Walking back out into our room, I glanced over at the bed and Bill's dead body lying there. It's remarkable how immobile he is in the day, like a statue. I walked over to the closet and threw on my robe and walked back to sit next to him. Skin smooth like alabaster and almost as white. I ran my fingertips down his face, memorizing every curve from the arch of his nose to his perfectly sculpted lips and chin. What an incredibly beautiful creature. I climbed over Bill and laid beside him, softly scratching little circular patterns across his back with my nails. He was peaceful to watch and it soothed and relaxed me to touch him. I found my eyelids growing heavy once more and I drifted off to sleep again.

I woke again at a more desirable hour to a much more desirable activity. That's my man, always knows what buttons to push and just how to push them. After our romp in the sheets, we laid in bed discussing a few orders of business that had been weighing heavily on Bill's mind. He of course still worried about Victor and his obvious obsession with me, but more pressing to him was my getting back to work, explaining things to Eric and just getting life back to normal. The subject of a formal wedding ceremony came up yet again and I did my best to distract him from the topic. It wasn't that it wasn't important to me, it just......wasn't. Does that make sense? Probably not, but it's not like it was legal anyhow and why bother with the rigmarole. Bill's persistence made me think he had been talking to my mother.

"Darling, I was wondering.....since you are avoiding the topic of a wedding so vehemently, perhaps you would entertain the idea of a small familial visit instead?"

"Um Bill, speak English will ya? What year is it baby, I mean really?"

I was teasing him, but I really didn't want to have to think so hard just to understand what he was talking about. Turns out I didn't have to, the phone rang right at that moment. Guess who?

Oh he was good. He had called in the big guns to talk me into doing things his way. Unfortunately for him, it was still going to take a little convincing.

"Hi Sweetie! We're at the airport in Shreveport."

I looked over at Bill grinning next to me. I stuck out my tongue at him.

"Great Mom, I had no idea. What a surprise."

~~**~~

We were up, dressed, and in the car on the way to get them in a mere 10 minutes. I let Bill drive since he was still a bit faster than me, though it pained him to do it. Plus, I was paranoid about Grace being in my car without seat belts. I think Bill broke a land speed record because we were there in 25 minutes. My parents and sister were standing with their luggage waving at us as we pulled up, it made Bill smile. I always knew it was hard for him to not have a family anymore and if having mine around made him happy that was fine with me. We did the typical greeting pleasantries and jumped back in the car, this time driving back human speed for my father's benefit.

It was already late for my family by the time we got back to the house. Bill and I quickly prepared the guest rooms before Grace demanded he read her a story and put her to bed. Bill was all too happy to oblige. She had him wrapped around her little finger worse than she had my father. When I went downstairs, I found my father in the living room making a fire and my mother putzing around making him a sandwich. It was as if they were living their normal lives only in my house. I cuddled up onto the sofa and watched my dad.

"It was a little chilly and dark so I thought I'd start us a fire. I hope that's ok."

"Of course Dad, make yourself at home. I'm sorry we don't really have all the normal human comforts you do at home, but we can run out and get a few things if you need them. This was a pretty big surprise."

He gave me the 'I know all about your mother's surprises' look on his way back to the couch. He sat down and put his arm around me, kissing me on the forehead.

"That's ok Princess, it'll be just fine. You been doing ok? Happy to be back to normal and everything?"

"I'm good Dad, you don't have to make the small talk ya know? We can just sit."

He didn't say another word. My life wasn't exactly something that was easy for him to discuss. Hell, his life wasn't easy for him to discuss. He married a woman who was part of a family full of Vampire slayers. That was weird enough. Couple that with the emasculating aspect of knowing your wife and daughters would never take your name and could probably kick your ass. Life for my father had been anything but normal, but he did is best to plod along. My mother brought him out his sandwich and a Pepsi just as Bill came back downstairs after playing big brother. He looked satisfied with himself, telling us she was sound asleep.

The four of us sat and talked for a bit about life in general, letting my mother tell us all about the flight and how the luggage was delayed. It took her a surprisingly long time before she started in with her usual round of twenty questions. It was always odd to have these little conversations with my mother since she had a tendency to want to discuss things that were kind of, well...personal. Bill graciously answered her questions about our current feeding practices, whether we drank from one and other in the kitchen or only in bed. I hung my head in my hands wanting to die as quickly as possible and be put out of my misery. I noticed my father had reached his information breaking point and told him he looked tired and should get some rest. He winked at me thanking me for the out I had given him and went upstairs.

It was only a few minutes later when I heard him yell Bill's name. His voice cracked and I could hear the terror in it just as Bill flashed passed me and up the stairs. I followed as quickly as I could arriving in time to watch Bill dive out Grace's bedroom window. I turned to look at my father, tears streaming down his face. Grace was not there. Instantly I felt sick, smelling the lingering scent of a Vampire that was not Bill. My mother ran up the stairs screaming.

"What happened? Mattie? Where's Bill? Where's Gracie? Noah? Someone please tell me what's going on!"

Clearing his throat my father spoke.

"They took her. She's gone."


	21. Chapter 21

Yes, I'm back. Nothing like a two year mojo hiatus right? Yeah...sorry about that, long story. I'm not promising that I will post these updates frequently, but I will try. I have been wanting to finish this story to prove I could, and mark my words, I will.

I do not own any of the characters from Southern Vampire Mysteries. They all belong to Charlaine Harris. Bless her for sharing them with us. Mattie is my very own.

Chapter 21

"I'm not letting you be in charge of this! She's my sister; my family and I will handle it!" I was nose to...mid chest level with Eric in front of the fireplace, screaming.

"She was taken in my territory, Matilda, by a Vampire, which makes this my business as sheriff and therefore, in charge." He smirked at me as though he had won, which only made me angrier. I was about to let him have it again when a soft voice spoke from over my shoulder.

"Matilda, let the man do his job. I'm certain he and Bill can determine who took Grace and why." My father was sitting in Bill's chair, head in his hands. "You will have to contact your aunts and Mr. Northman will no doubt understand that."

I took a step back and and a deep breath. "Ok, daddy. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you and I know this is hardest on you." Bill took my hand and set the other on my father's shoulder "We will find her Noah, I promise you. The Sheriff has excellent trackers at his disposal who will have her located before the night is over." I gave Bill the side eye as he squeezed my hand.

To me, that seemed a bit premature of Bill to be promising, but what did I know? All Vampires have their special traits and how did I know there wasn't one that could track an asshole kidnapper in no time flat. Though Bill had been the first to take off after him, he was able to mask his scent remarkably well and Bill lost the trail in mere miles. The look on his face when he returned was painful to see; I could tell he felt like he had failed my parents.

My mother had been holding herself together remarkably well considering her youngest child had been taken. She was telling Eric's trackers as much information about Grace as possible and letting them rummage through her things; not exactly the sort of mother in distress behavior I was expecting from her. She was rising to the occasion much like any of our family should and it made me feel even worse for my dad. I knew he was going to want to crawl away and hide when my aunts arrived. Maybe I should have Bill take him to Merlotte's and leave him there? It would be good for him to be around his people and maybe he wouldn't feel so useless, as I could clearly tell he was here.

I took a moment to ask Bill to remove my father from this before my phone rang. It was Victor.

"This really isn't a good time, You Majesty. We're having a bit of a family crisis. May I please call you back?"

"So I've heard. Perhaps I can be of some service."

A lump rose up in my throat. "Come again? You knew? But how? It's only just happened in the last few hours and Bill and I told no one other than Eric Northman."

"I am your King, Mattie. I make it my business to know everything in the territories that belong to me. I thought you knew quite well by this point that nothing escapes my watchful eye. If there is anything I may do to assist you, I am at your disposal."

I was well aware Victor had eyes in every part of Louisiana, but the time frame here was less than encouraging. I tried to believe him, but it was too convenient for my taste and if there was anything I had learned from Bill, it was to be weary of situations that seemed too perfect. To my credit, I played dumb.

"Of course, Victor. I didn't mean to imply that you wouldn't know what was going on in your kingdom. My apologies. I'm letting Eric run the show right now so I can take care of my parents. I will have him contact you if we need any assistance." I hung up the phone and screamed.

"That bastard! He knows something, Eric, I know he does!"

"I certainly didn't think you would tell him I was in charge unless you thought so. I know you better than that." He was suppressing a smile. "Are you surprised? He is not the sort to give up on something he wants so easily and that something is you. He's banking on you coming to her rescue, you know this."

I slumped down into the couch. Eric was right. Victor knew how to get to me; my family and Bill. If he hurts them, I come running. Now the question was how to beat him at his own game. I picked up the phone to call my aunts. I didn't want to open that can of worms, but they were the only way to be certain that we could save Grace. Eric folded himself down beside me and took my hand while I recounted the situation to my aunt Anneke. She wasn't excited in the least about assisting me as I was already considered the black sheep of the family for my associations with Vampires, but Grace was an innocent. She promised they would be at Fangtasia to meet us tomorrow evening and create a plan of attack. That oughta be a real good time!


End file.
